Like Love
by Gossu
Summary: Due to Rumi's ineptitude at a certain subject, Hiratsuka-sensei took the liberty to get a special tutor for her. (Un)Fortunately for Rumi, that tutor is a certain fish-eyed loner that she met all those years ago.
1. Chapter 1

**Since there's a shiny new Rumi character tag now, I thought 'Hey, why not put it to good use?'. Not to mention, almost all of the multi-chaptered Rumi stories haven't been updated since forever. Thus, I wrote a Rumi story. So Aquaquaqua, if you're reading this, cheers for Rumi tag indeed.**

 **However, updates might be a tad slow since I want to complete my other stories first.**

 **I have nothing more to say so read on.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1:** **Hiratsuka Shizuka Is A Very Responsible Teacher(Not Really).**

Street lamps.

Utility poles.

Traffic lights.

More street lamps.

And even more utility poles.

Oh! And what a surprise, more traffic lights!

Someone…please just end my existence already.

Why? Can someone please explain to me how a road trip from Chiba to Saitama can take so long? According to Google-san, a normal trip by car would take only one and a half hour. So why does it feel like I'm in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber? Is everything related to education a Hyperbolic Time Chamber?

Maybe, it was less about the car, and more about the driver. They do say that a host can either make or break the party. Though I'm not sure if that can be applied to drivers, nor do I have the experience to make an educated guess.

And so, for the 14th time today (I counted), and with a heavy sigh, I posed a fundamental question that would shake the core beliefs of people everywhere.

"Hiratsuka-sensei."

"What?"

"Are we there yet?"

To which my ever respected teacher responded with a heavier sigh.

"Tsurumi Rumi-san," _Oh boy, she's using my full name_ , "For the 100th time today-,"

"Actually, it's the 14th time."

"Not the point!" She shouted as she made a sharp turn, almost knocking me off balance, "Besides, I told you it'll take at least one and a half hour. And what's the time right now?"

I took a look at the car's clock, "3:14 pm."

"And we left at 2 o'clock. Put those together and?"

"Ah, your clock must be broken then."

At that moment, I was sure that if she didn't have to keep her hands on the steering wheel, Hiratsuka-sensei would've reached over and bonked me on the head.

But she, instead, decided to settle for a grumble instead.

"Y'know, I miss the naïve and innocent Tsurumi. _She_ would've wanted to go on a trip with an awesome teacher like me."

I glared at her. She probably meant the shy and innocent girl that I was in my freshman years. In all honesty, I was only being respectful towards her because she's a teacher at Sobu high and also, due to a couple of stories that the upperclassmen told us freshmen. Apparently, she was a Christmas cake **[1]** , and an angry one at that.

Of course, things were different right now. The glittering, silver ring on her left ring finger was a clear indicator of that.

"And I missed not being forced on a trip after you fed my parents lies. On the last week of summer vacation, mind you." I commented nonchalantly.

"There's only five days left anyways so who cares?"

Hearing her treating my last summer vacation as a high school student like an afterthought, I was about to blow up on her, but she kept on talking.

"Besides, I didn't tell any lies," Hiratsuka-sensei replied, her face straight and serious, "I merely told them that this trip was for the betterment of your academics."

"Exactly!" I pointed an accusing finger at her, "It's like you chose a bunch of random buzzwords, mix them together and then bait my parents with it. Hook, line and snicker."

As I said those words, I could hear a slight grumble to my side.

"God, this is exactly why I'm taking you to meet him. You can't even use idioms properly."

I scrunched up my nose in annoyance. "Why would I need to know how to use idioms properly anyway? I chose the _Science_ course for god's sake. Why am I even writing essays, huh? Also, _him_?"

"You do know that in college, you _have_ to write essays, right? Learning proper grammar structures and syntax is essential." I grumbled at her reply, "And yes, him."

"Him who?"

"Oh, just an old student of mine. You might have forgotten him, but you two met before, y'know."

I could've sworn she grinned a little.

"Really now?"

"Uh-huh."

Someone I met before who was also a student of Hiratsuka-sensei…Unfortunately, no one popped into my mind. Since that was the case, I must've met this student of hers from a very long time ago, or maybe, I just have horrible memories. Who knows?

All I know is that we still haven't arrived in Saitama yet!

Reaching around for a while, my hand finally grasped a lever and I tilted my seat backward. If I was going to wait, I might as well sleep on the way there.

But before I drifted off into slumber, I asked Hiratsuka-sensei another fundamental question.

"Hey, Sensei."

"What?"

"Are we there yet?"

Her only response was another sharp turn which actually knocked me off balance this time.

* * *

By the time we arrived in Saitama, I had already gotten a bit of sleep. Heck, at one point, I even caught myself snoring, though through my sheer mental fortitude, I managed to stop it just in time.

Hiratsuka-sensei's chuckle implied otherwise, but it's not like she'll mention it in passing or anything. Even she isn't that insensitive.

"Oi, Tsurumi. Wake up. We're here already."

Hiratsuka-sensei's voice rang through my ears, forcing me to open my eyes. Why was she trying to get me out of this comfortable position again?

Oh, right. To meet a stranger.

"Five more minutes." I grumbled, turning away from her voice.

"Really?" I heard her sigh, "All this time, you've been asking me when we will arrive, and now you don't even have the decency to step off the car?"

I grumbled even louder.

To which she responded with an exasperated sigh.

"I have recordings of your snores." She simply said.

My eyes shot open and I swiftly twisted my body, my eyes meeting hers in less than a second.

"You wouldn't."

She smirked.

This woman, and her blackmailing ways…

She held a phone in her hand with her finger barely hovering over the play button. Now, I'm not the most technologically savvy person, but even I could tell that it was a sound file.

I take it back. Hiratsuka-sensei can, and has no shame being that insensitive.

I gritted my teeth. Why do I have her as my guidance counselor…

"Fine, fine!"

Drowsy as I may be, I had no problems getting off the car and straightening my skirt. Hiratsuka-sensei was waiting for me with hands on her hip, and a smirk adorning her face.

Oh, not to mention, the most atrocious pair of sunglasses ever.

Maybe I can walk ten steps behind her or something. The second handed embarrassment emanating from her very body was too much for me to handle.

"So, where are we going?" I asked whilst rubbing sleep out of my eyes.

"A café. He's waiting for us there."

Looking at her dubiously, I replied, "A café? Really? That's, like, the most cliché exposition dump backdrop ever."

"Then where do _you_ want to go?"

"Home."

"Denied."

"Tch."

With my request brutally and savagely denied by my ever so beloved teacher, I could only wordlessly trudged along behind her, all while being continually battered by the summer heat.

Damn it, Sun. For such a majestic celestial creation, why do you have to produce deadly lasers at the same time?!

Despite the harsh heat coursing through the atmosphere, there was still a sizable amount of people walking about. Most of them had luggage or backpacks. In other words, they were perfectly normal people who could spend their last five days of summer vacation freely, and not get dragged around by their teacher.

Hiratsuka-sensei. I know you're a guidance counselor and all, but can you at least do the guidance counseling after summer vacation?

Before long, we arrived at the specified café. I said that, but I was a bit wary of the location since Hiratsuka-sensei didn't look too certain. I mean, after all, she isn't the type of person to keep up with trends. Of course, I followed her with a couple of steps between us, just in case, she got the wrong one and have to walk out of there without buying anything.

Fortunately for her, it wasn't the wrong one. But it was quite difficult to spot whoever we were supposed to meet since:

One. I don't even know who he is, much less how he looks like.

Two. Everyone in this goddamn café looks the same with all their fancy laptops and pretentious mannerisms. Everyone in this hipster-esque establishment looked so shallow, they might as well be a puddle.

Hiratsuka-sensei took a good couple of seconds to find our guy, but before long, she was heading towards a table with me in tow. I couldn't see past her due to her height (Cons of being a youthful girl, I suppose), so I wasn't able to see who he was.

But when I did, I almost did a double take.

Sharp, bored and most importantly, unique eyes. Unruly hair that somehow looked pretty good. Not to mention, a posture that would make an orthopedic doctor cringe.

But his eyes though…they were too familiar.

Even so, after all these years, I could only come to one conclusion.

There was no way that it was _him_.

"You're late." Was the first thing he said to us, or more specifically, to Hiratsuka-sensei. His voice was surprisingly smooth yet deep.

"Sorry about that. Traffic was absolutely horrible." Sensei said as she occupied a nearby chair.

Was this how a former student should act towards his teacher? Of course, I realized the hypocrisy in my statement, but even I wasn't that rude or brash with Hiratsuka-sensei.

My thoughts were immediately halted when his eyes wandered over to me. They weren't filled with apprehensiveness or inquiry, but instead, they were apathetic. I felt queasy all of the sudden.

"So this is your student, I presume?"

"Yup," Sensei looked over to me before beckoning me, "Take a seat already. You're making a scene."

"R-Right."

I quickly seated myself and straightened my back as much as possible so as to not garner any more attention from the other customers, and especially, from _him._ Like seriously, his blank face was really putting me off.

"So, Sensei…" The stranger began, "For what deranged reason did you call me out here for? In this awful heatwave, to boot."

Wow, he had no restraints on his words.

But despite his rather harsh tone, Hiratsuka-sensei wasn't even fazed. It was as if this was a normal occurrence between the both of them. If so, then I seriously wonder what kind of abusive teacher-student relationship they had.

"Aww, come on. Don't be like that. This heatwave's nothing." She waved off his concerns.

"Y'know, Sensei. There's a reason why there's so many people in this tiny, little café. And it's not because this place's popular."

In response, Sensei just rubbed her head awkwardly, all while also awkwardly trying to laugh and ease the tension.

"Fine,fine. I'll get to the point," She dropped her cheerful act, "I need a favor from you."

Before her former student could speak, Hiratsuka-sensei continued.

"Though, if we really think about it, it's not a favor. It's more like a 'You-owe-me' kind of thing, right?"

Sensei, please stick to a mood and commit to it.

"Fine. We can consider it like that." He sighed, annoyed at the situation. I was pretty annoyed too, but I tried my best to keep calm and collected.

"So, what do you want me to do this time?"

This time? Don't tell me that Hiratsuka-sensei actually used this guy before.

"Marking students' papers again? Or is it proofreading the syllabus?"

I gave Hiratsuka-sensei an incredulous look. No wonder our grades came back so fast before summer last year, even though she didn't have any apparent assistant. Seriously, how lazy can one teacher be?

"No, no, no. Nothing like that at all," Sensei vehemently denied his accusations, "It's a simple thing really. It'll only take five days, that's all."

"Five days." He repeated, "By that, you mean five days of my time? My work time, mind you?"

"Cut the crap. I know you're on summer vacation." She said with a smirk, "You're planning on visiting your family for the last week of your break, right?"

The man immediately concealed his lower jaw, leaving only his glaring eyes. To be honest, I felt tired just looking at him.

"How did you know?" He asked.

To which Hiratsuka-sensei replied with another smirk, "Sources."

It took a few seconds, but eventually, the man asked, or rather stated.

"Komachi?"

"Komachi." Sensei replied instantly.

Heaving a huge sigh, the man let his arms fall to the side in apparent mental exhaustion. I wouldn't blame him. Dealing with Hiratsuka-sensei can take a toll on one's patience and mental stability.

But what is a Komachi? Some sort of underground, black market-type information network? And five days to do a favor? I wasn't sure if I should even be around to hear what they were planning.

"Well? Are you going to tell me what I'm doing or not? The sooner you do, the sooner I'll finish it."

"It's not a quick job, ya know," Hiratsuka-sensei crossed her arms, "When I say five days, I quite literally mean five days."

"F-Five days of work?" The man looked mortified at the prospect, "What kind of hell did you plan for me, woman?"

Goddamn, he really does have no filters on his mouth.

"It's simple, really. While you're visiting your family for five days, I want you-,"

She pointed towards him, before pointing a thumb at me, eliciting a confused face from both me and the stranger.

"-to teach her."

"I refuse." He responded with no hesitation.

Meanwhile, I decided to take in her words and process it. To transform the air particles being vibrated in front of her mouth into neural signals that could be interpreted by my brain. It is generally assumed that the speed of a neural signal is 0.5 meters per second.

That's fast, isn't it?

If so, then there must've been a gap between the neurons connecting my ears to my brain, because it took a solid five seconds (I counted) before I was able to fully comprehend what Hiratsuka-sensei just said.

"W-What did you just say?!" I spoke in a hushed whisper, not wanting to attract any attention.

Hiratsuka-sensei, meanwhile, just looked at me in confusion, as if expecting me to accept this insane proposition of hers.

"I'm saying he's teaching you."

"No, I'm not."

I was about to ask her again, but her former student interjected; his glare sharper than usual.

"Oh come on, it's not like you have anything better to do, right?"

"How could you possibly know what schedule for the week? What if I planned to help in the local community center, huh?"

"We both know you're just going to visit your family. Nothing more, nothing less. You wouldn't waste extra energy doing something extraneous."

"And teaching this kid isn't extraneous?"

 _Oi, who are you calling a kid?_

"I'm just cashing in a favor after all, right? Besides, you're great at literature. This should be piece of cake."

"Let's say I do agree-,"

"Oh, you will."

He grunted in annoyance before talking again, "But I won't be a good teacher. Just because I'm good at writing doesn't mean I'm good at teaching kids how to write."

 _Seriously? Again with the kid?_

"You don't believe in yourself?"

"Well, I-,"

"Because you don't have to," Sensei pointed her thumb to herself. I tried to stop her from doing what she was going to do but I was too slow.

"All you have to do is believe in me. Believe in the Hiratsuka Shizuka who believes in you." **[2]**

 _Uggh….Sensei, you just took away two third of my life from second hand embarrassment._

I wasn't alone in my sentiment, as both her former student and I quickly exchanged knowing glances. I assumed he was also internally cringing, but I wouldn't know that.

After all, I didn't let my eyes linger on him for too long. It was just too embarrassing for me, dammit.

"You are technically leaving a high school student alone with me. Besides, did you even ask her parents yet? What do they think?"

Huh, that guy did make a good point. What _did_ my parents think about tutoring?

"Done, done, and done. You think a responsible teacher like me wouldn't have thought of all those things?"

"Pssh…responsible…" I silently scoffed, and to my surprise, my supposed tutor chuckled. Whether it was due to my remark, or due to the ridiculousness of this entire situation, I didn't know.

Well, it did feel a little nice having someone acknowledging you after being ignored all these time.

My tutor seemed skeptical about Hiratsuka-sensei's claims as well, but just like a man who had experienced this sort of forcefulness before, he ultimately succumbed to Hiratsuka-sensei's demand with another huge sigh.

Gee, sighing seemed to be the common theme today.

"Will I get paid?"

"First thing on your mind is money, huh…" Hiratsuka-sensei said, "Of course, you do. I'm not cheap enough to have someone work without proper compensation, y'know."

"Yet you're cheap enough to not just teach her yourself." He countered.

Woah, this guy was actually kinda…cool, with him not putting up with Hiratsuka-sensei's crap and all that.

Of course, I used cool very loosely here. He didn't really put an effort into not accepting this job. Not to mention, being associated with Hiratsuka-sensei already knocks down your coolness stats by half.

"But you're still okay with that." Sensei remarked.

"I guess…"

"Well then," She stood up, "I'm gonna get something cool to drink first, then we'll leave. Want anything, Rumi?"

"E-Eh? No, I'm fine." I declined her offer.

And with that, Hiratsuka-sensei left the table to go order some mediocre and overpriced sugar water that has the same calorie content as actual sugar water, thus leaving me alone with this man.

…

Wait, what?

 _I'm alone…with a stranger…_

At the moment, all I wanted to do was pull out my phone and pretend that I was busy, but that would be too rude, wouldn't it? After all, I had just met him, and if he was going to be my tutor, then I should make a good first impression.

I took a quick glance at him, wondering how he'd cope with this situation.

Maybe I should follow his example and sit quietly or maybe, just-

 _He'd already pulled out his phone!_

Unbelievable.

This man truly didn't care about what others think. Then again, maybe, just maybe, he was waiting for me to make a conversation with him.

Okay, Rumi. Start this off nice and slow with a quick question of who he is or what his name is.

I have a general idea of who he might be, but I didn't want to assume.

Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves (Why was I even nervous around him anyway?), I started by getting his enough attention.

"U-Umm…"

Sure enough, his eyes detached away from the phone's monitor and latched on to mine. I unconsciously gulped at his stoic eyes.

 _Just ask for his name. Simple, easy, and efficient._

"So…how are you doing nowadays, Hachiman?"

 _NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-_

"I'm doing fine, thank you."

"A-Ah…I see."

I breathed out a sigh of relief. At least, he is indeed _the_ Hikigaya Hachiman. Jeez, why was I so worried anyway? It's not like he was judging for using his given name, right?

…he wasn't judging me, right?

But still, seeing Hachiman again after all these years was…surreal to say the least. The last time we met was…six years ago, perhaps? At the time, he looked so…bland and anti-social, but now, he looked kinda…better, I guess? There was just this aura of adultness around him that just wasn't there before.

I still remembered when he came over to help me with the cutouts of the decorations. That was one of the only good things to happen during the whole Christmas party ordeal; the other being the end of said Christmas party.

I wonder if he saw me during the performance…

"So, Rumi, are you-,"

"Wait, you remember my name?"

Upon realizing what I'd asked, I immediately berated myself. Of course, he remembers your name. Hiratsuka-sensei probably reminded him of it at some point; not to mention, she'd just mentioned it mere minutes ago. Rumi, you stupid, stupid idiot.

Hachiman looked a bit surprise at this as he retreated a bit back into his seat.

"Well, yeah. Hiratsuka-sensei made sure to remind me of it." He explained.

"R-Right…"

I let out a little chuckle, if only to ease the awkwardness that I put on myself. Why did I think otherwise? Of course, Hiratsuka-sensei would've made sure that my future tutor would remember my name. Hachiman himself probably doesn't remember an unremarkable primary school student like me.

Well, all that mattered right now was that Hachiman did remember my name. That was good enough for a non-awkward, tension-filled conversation.

"So, I wanted to ask you," Hachiman began, "Are you really okay with this?"

Raising one of my eyebrows in confusion, I asked back, "Okay with what exactly?"

"This whole tutoring thing," He looked at me weirdly, "Don't you disagree with what Hiratsuka-sensei said at all? I find it weird that you would be A-okay with any of her proposals."

"Well…" I couldn't find any excuses. Of course, I disagreed with Hiratsuka-sensei. Dragging out your student during summer vacation, forcing her to meet a stranger (Somewhat) was something a psychopath did.

But now, I couldn't find an excuse.

How did I become this mellow?

"I mean, I'm just extremely bad with writing essays so…" I decided to use Hiratsuka-sensei's excuse instead.

"Even so," He looked at me skeptically, "This sort of tutoring or study session can easily be done with a couple of other students."

"I just don't…work well together with others. Besides, I'm not that close to any of my classmates."

"…But you're okay with studying with a complete and total stranger?" Hachiman rebutted.

He got me good there.

"You're not a complete stranger, per se," Seeing his confused looks, I continued, "I mean; we know each other before right? So, you're more like a close, personal…"

Crap, my list of vocabulary ran out. How could I say this without making things even more awkward?

"…acquaintance?"

"Interesting choice of words there." said Hachiman as he took a sip of his coffee, "What university are you aiming for?"

Thank goodness for changing the subject, Hachiman. I wasn't sure if he was sensitive enough to notice my discomfort, but thank you for not being as crude as Hiratsuka-sensei.

Unfortunately for me though, the subject that he brought up was something that I didn't think too much about.

"Umm…that's an…interesting subject…"

God, I need to get better at hiding my anxiety. Then again, what was I getting anxious over? Talking to a man you haven't seen in over six years. That seemed stupid and illogical.

So, why did I feel so uneasy around him?

"You're at third year high school student already, aren't you?"

I nodded. Hiratsuka-sensei must've told him that.

"So then, why don't you start thinking about which university you want to go to? It just seems wasteful to not plan ahead."

Again , I had no retorts.

University.

Future employment.

My future.

Those are things that I never thought too much about. It was troublesome for me to think about them so I decided to sweep them under the rug. Stupid idea, I know, but you can't just expect a teenager to come up with her plans for the future by herself.

"It's complicated…" I finally said.

"How?"

"Well, I nev-,"

But before I could explain myself, a plastic cup filled with pink liquid was slammed down right in front of me, with no regards for my mental health whatsoever. I didn't need to guess who it was as I immediately glared at the perpetrator, who in turn, just gave me a grin.

Hiratsuka-sensei, why do you hate normal heartrate this much?

"You two seem to be getting along fine." She said as she brought a straw to her lips.

I looked down at my own drink. Honestly, I already told her that I didn't need anything, but she got me this overpriced sugar water anyway. Well, since she'd already bought it and all, I guess I should take it after all, since the world is facing food problems after all.

"Considering that you left us alone, we really had nothing better to do."

One of my eyes twitched at his response. Was talking to me really that much of a chore? I take it back. Both of them are just as insensitive as the other.

Hachiman soon stood up, taking his half-finished cup of coffee along with him. Seeing this as a cue for us to leave, both Hiratsuka-sensei and I soon followed suite. All three of us soon ended up outside, under the scorching sun once more.

We all walked with an extremely fast pace. Hachiman probably dreaded coming out of the air-conditioned café, but most likely, he wanted to get back home as fast as possible. Meanwhile, Hiratsuka-sensei probably just wanted to get to the car as fast as possible.

As for me, well…I also desired the cool, air-conditioned car that was so far close, yet so far.

But before we could go, Hiratsuka-sensei called out to Hachiman, who was apparently walking away from us without even a single word.

"Oi, Hikigaya," This caught Hachiman's attention as he slowly turned his head around, "You do know that I brought my car, right?"

Hearing this, he sighed before walking over to us with resignation, having gotten what Hiratsuka-sensei was trying to say.

"You and your fancy car. It's a wonder to how you can even afford it."

Hiratsuka-sensei's car does look very fancy. It looks like something a millionaire who couldn't give a damn about the general public buy. Not to mention, the car is a really ugly shade of red.

Seriously, Sensei, at least get that part right.

"Hikigaya, please," She led both of us to the parking spot, "There's nothing in this world you can't get without hard work and dedication."

"And corruption." Hachiman slyly added.

"And connection." Hiratsuka-sensei quickly corrected him.

When we got to the car, as per usual, I sat in the front with Hiratsuka-sensei while Hachiman decided to take a seat in the back. According to him, his home wasn't that far from the café, which was why he decided to walk. Though, as he said that, he also mentioned that due to the heat, the walk here was ten times more arduous than usual.

To which Hiratsuka-sensei responded by chuckling sheepishly.

Seriously, Sensei, at least take responsibility.

The two adults-or rather, the two elders in the car spoke with each other without any interruption from me. After all, even if I am an adult by my own rights, even I would find it rude when someone tries to intrude in my conversation.

But just being an innocent bystander to their conversation was enlightening; since both of them were catching up with each other, I was able to learn what Hachiman was doing over the past six years or so.

Some say it is unethical to eavesdrop, but I say it's not eavesdropping if you are with the conversationalists.

Apparently, even though he finished college last year, Hachiman had already gotten a stable job. I wasn't able to catch the specifics of it, but I think it might be in a publishing company or something. He didn't really give out that much detail.

On the other hand, I'd heard faint mentioning of the name 'Yuki' and 'Yui'. Sometimes, I had even heard the 'Komachi' that was mentioned earlier. Those names sounded pretty familiar and, not to mention, pretty feminine.

Were they his classmates? Closes friends? Or perhaps…

Girlfriend **s**?!

No way. It couldn't be. Hachiman doesn't look like someone to participate in a polyamorous relationship, especially not with three people.

But then again, covers for books are there for the sole purpose of judging. You don't just waltzed into a bookstore and read ten chapters of a novel before deciding to buy it.

Then again…

I decided to leave the matters of Hachiman's relationship alone. Besides, I could just ask him later, when he comes to…tutor me. God, today was weird.

Hopefully, it won't be as weird as a high school student asking a grown man whether or not he's playing three games at once.

I mean, he probably won't mind, right? We are technically long-lost, sort-of-close-but-not-really acquaintances.

But the most interesting thing that Hachiman said was when his apartment complex was within our sight. He said, and I quote:

"Why did you bring your student here anyway? In fact, why did you even come here? You could've just mailed me or something. It's not like you have to be courteous, y'know."

And Hiratsuka-sensei's response? A chuckle and a condescending "Oh, Hikigaya. You seriously didn't figure it out yet?"

To which both Hikigaya and I stared at her in confusion. Her and her vague answers…

As we arrived in front of the apartment complex, which was very fancy looking by the way, Hachiman quickly got off the car. Understandable action; after all, this is his home, and as such, he would want nothing more than to escape this dreadful summer heat, and escape into the haven filled with cool air.

What wasn't understandable though was the fact that Hiratsuka-sensei urged me to get off the car. At first, I assumed that she was going to get off as well, and we would most likely have a little tea break in Hachiman's home.

While the thought was rude, it couldn't have been any other possibilities.

But as I stood there, waiting for Sensei to get out of the car, she did something that neither of us expected.

She didn't unbuckle her belt, nor did she make an attempt to unlock her car's door. In fact, she locked it, prompting Hachiman to ask.

"Sensei, what are you doing?"

"You seriously didn't think that I would drive all the way out here just to tell you about this whole tutoring thing, right?" replied Hiratsuka-sensei, sporting a mocking grin.

I didn't get what she meant by that, and neither did Hachiman…for a few seconds at least.

"What are you even…" His face dropped mere seconds later, "saying…"

I tried to gauge what his expression or reaction was, but that failed due to Hachiman covering the entirety of his face with his own hand; either out of exasperation or something else, I couldn't know.

But all that changed when I heard the car's engine revving up, as Hachiman broke out of his stupor and rushed towards Sensei's car.

"Wait, wait, wait, did you even ask her for what she wanted to do yet?" His voice was desperate, almost pleading with Hiratsuka-sensei for some unknown reasons.

"I asked her parents." Was Sensei's simple reply.

But…asked my parents for what? For permission on this trip for the 'betterment' of my academics? If so, I didn't see what the big deal was.

"That's not the problem here."

"Oh, it will just fine," Hiratsuka-sensei nonchalantly waved aside whatever worries Hachiman had, "Besides, she's a third year student already. She's basically a grown up."

"No, that's exactly why it will be a problem."

"Argh, you're just a worrywart."

The car's engine revved even louder as Hachiman was forced to let go of the car's window, lest he wanted to be dragged along for a ride.

"OI, Shizuka!"

"Oh, and don't forget to get her home by 10. Also, the last train to Chiba is at 8, by the way!" shouted Hiratsuka-sensei as she drove back the way she came.

It was a miracle that she didn't catch any attention. Though, in fairness, no sane person would be out here dealing with the summer heat anyway.

…wait, then why was I here?

And wait…why did Hiratsuka-sensei drive off into the sunset…without me? Weren't we supposed to have tea time or something together? Will I be the only company for Hachiman during his tea time?

The gears in my head kept on turning and turning. It was a slow, painful process. But eventually, like an old PS2 memory card that hadn't been plugged in for five years, my thoughts slowly formed together into one, single, coherent thought.

"WAIT, HIRATSUKA-,"

But by that time, the only thing visible to me was the gaudy red rear of the fancy car belonging to Hiratsuka-sensei. The same Sensei that left me behind in an unknown prefecture.

"…sensei…"

Remember how Hiratsuka-sensei didn't catch any attention even though she drove away in a luxurious sports car while shouting like a drunkard? Well, I was glad for that since I didn't want anyone to see a high school student slumping on her knees in disbelief.

Well, anyone except him anyway.

And so, I slowly turned my head towards Hachiman, the actual adult here, for any reassurance at all, or perhaps, for any guidance.

But I was met with a face of confusion and pity. The kind of face you would give to a kid who was lied to by their parents.

Because while I sought reassurance from him, and while he pitied me, it was safe to say that both of us came to one, definite, concrete conclusion.

I, alone, was going to spend the rest of the evening with Hikigaya Hachiman.

* * *

 **References:**

 **[1]: Christmas Cake refers to a woman past the age of 25 that hasn't been married yet. Since Christmas is celebrated on the 25th of December, a Christmas Cake is expired past that date; which means that a woman also expires past her 25th birthday.**

 **[2]: Kamina's legendary line from Gurren Lagann.**

 **End notes: Ah, I hoped I captured Rumi's personality properly. I've never really had that much practice writing her, since the anime and novel give her so little screentime.**

 **Some of you might notice, some of you might not, but the title is actually a reference to a segment from the anime Nichijou by the same name - 'Like Love'. It's really lovely, and if you haven't already, go watch Nichijou. It's certainly an...interesting experience.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Minor notes:** **First off, I just want to say that my friend got me a Hatsune Miku figurine when he went to Japan. This has no relation to the story, but I just want to say it because I'm so happy right now.**

 **Secondly, I clearly underestimated the workload of universities. And because of that, a lot of delays happened. Even so, I want this to be the last update for 2017. Also, Happy new year to whoever's reading this.**

 **Well then, enjoy.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Hikigaya Hachiman is a Nice Man(Kind of)**

' _I want to beat you into a coma with a blunt object._

 _I want to grab one of those fancy picture frames with sharp edges and bash your ribcage in._

 _I'm going to take all those expensive sandpaper, line them up vertically and give all your fingers paper cuts simultaneously._

 _Then I'm going to squeeze lemon juice onto your wounds, sprinkle some salt on them, and watch as you suffer during a dry, windy day in Chiba.'_ **[1]**

-Tsurumi Rumi

Ah, I wonder if Hiratsuka-sensei would like that poem. After all, it was made up on the spot during a hot summer day where the emotions of an 18 year old girl were running high. If one were to look closely, they could almost feel the nuanced animosity that the writer has for a certain someone.

The title was still a work in progress at the moment, but I'm really partial towards **'My Beloved Teacher'**. Maybe I should ask someone else's opinion on it. It doesn't seem to convey my feelings well enough after all.

"Rumi?"

A voice? Oh yeah, a voice. That meant that a person was nearby, which also meant that I could ask that person for his opinion on my magnum opus.

But when I turned around and saw that incredulous look that he had on his face, I instead wished for the Earth itself to open up and swallow me, just to save me from the embarrassment that soon followed.

"You're okay?" Hachiman asked, a weird combination of worry and cringe mixed in his voice.

Of course, I'd wanted to scream on the top of my lungs 'NO!', but that would be too rude. My mom taught me to be a quiet girl after all, and as we all know, a quiet girl is a good girl.

Unfortunately though, the same can't be said for my face.

Despite having no mirror at the time, I could still tell how pathetic I must've been from Hachiman's reaction. Please, mother Earth; just make a valley right underneath and save me from this embarrassment.

"So…you want to come in for a cup of tea or something?"

I could tell from his voice that even the infallible Hikigaya Hachiman (Hiratsuka-sensei's words, not mine) was stuck at what to do with a teenage girl that was dumped in front of his doorsteps by her ever beloved teacher that she fully trusted in!

 _Calm down Rumi. You're better than this._

Without a single word, and with the grace and dignity of an empress, I stood up and brushed dirt off my skirt (Elegantly, of course) before facing Hachiman stoically. My hands were clasped in front of my body as I executed a perfect anti-pity bow that was passed down the Tsurumi clan for generations.

"Yes, tea would be nice." I replied, my voice dignified.

"Right…"

As I lifted my head up to meet his face, Hachiman had already begun walking towards his apartment. How rude. Couldn't he have waited for a distraught teenager such as myself? Honestly, like teacher, like student.

"Y'know, you didn't actually need to bow," Hachiman said as we neared the doors, "The neighbors could've seen you, and filed me for domestic abuse."

Did he seriously think that? Wait…or was it my fault for not really thinking of the consequences of my own actions? I really didn't need another guilty conscience inhabiting the already cramped area that is my mind.

Well, at the very least, he didn't say it was embarrassing or anything.

"And also…"

He turned to me, and with pity in his voice, he spoke.

"It was really embarassing so try not to do that in public, alright?"

"…yes…"

It was a good thing that he was inputting the code for the apartment's door; otherwise, he would've seen my flustered face. Since the apartment complex has glass doors, I could clearly see my red-as-a-tomato face. I could only hope that Hachiman didn't let his eyes wander off to the side.

Seriously, Hachiman, I thought you were supposed to be someone who enjoys ironic humor! That's what Hiratsuka-sensei told me. Unless…adulthood ruined his outlook on life and now he can't find any meaning or purpose in his life except for working a 9-5 job every single day for the rest of his life.

Ugh…I don't wanna grow up. Make me a primary school kid again!

The door slid open, and Hachiman walked in briskly. I followed suite soon after. The receptionist gave us – or rather me – some doubting glances, but I could always fall onto the good ol' cousin from out of the prefecture excuse to save my own ass.

Hiratsuka-sensei had always said that Hachiman is a pessimistic, nihilistic, misanthropic man who also happens to be lazy. How much of that is currently true – I do not know, but one thing I do know is that he isn't lazy at all.

Naze? Why? **[2]**

Simply put, even though there is a perfectly functional elevator in the complex, he had chosen to walk up the stairs instead. And when I asked what floor his room is on, he told me, and in a completely deadpan and bored tone:

"It's on the sixth floor."

I must've stared at him in bewilderment for a solid ten seconds or so, because we were already on the fifth floor by the time he told me this crucial piece of information! Doesn't he have the decency to not trouble his guests?

But since we were already on the fifth floor, I just sucked it up and went along with him, heaving heavy breaths along the way. Either this man is a freak athlete or I'd really let myself go.

…Nah, this guy's a complete and utter freak.

Arriving at our destination, Hachiman fished out a key before unlocking the door to his haven. I was already beginning to feel the cool air escaping through the small gap under the door. Oh dear heavens, was this my salvation for going through such an arduous trial?

For the first time today, it seemed that my trust had not been betrayed.

The moment he gestured for me to come inside, I walked in cautiously as to not be hit with a wave of heat and disappointment at the same time. _Luckily_ for me (Extra emphasis on _luck_ ), his apartment was already air conditioned to its very core, which probably had something to do with Hachiman himself. The living room might as well have been its own biome!

Amidst my enjoyment of the cool environment, I almost didn't hear Hachiman muttering something about making myself at home and getting tea or something.

I wordlessly took him up on that offer, and began lying down on the cool, soft carpet that resided underneath his short table. Dear gods, if I die from the aftereffect of the heatwave right now, at least bury me underneath this cool layer of fabric so I may forever be embraced by winter even in the afterlife.

Feeling that this heavenly carpet of comfort would disappear if I even let go of it, I began rolling around on it like a hamster. I couldn't help it after all, since I did went through the traumatic experience of being abandoned by an adult that I trusted, waited in the heatwave, and had my knees implode due to evil staircases.

Not to mention, I am technically not an adult yet, so it's totally justified!

"Uhh…Rumi?" A lone voice called out.

I froze. No, not from the air conditioner. Air conditioners aren't designed to be that effective in cooling something down to levels that might induce freezing.

If anything, I wished I had frozen from the cool air circulating inside this comfortable living room. I wished that the air conditioners were so efficient that icicles would form on my ears, effectively causing me to become deaf, and therefore, causes me to not hear what Hachiman was saving.

But unfortunately, air conditioners just aren't that efficient.

"Is there a reason why you're rolling around on the carpet…" A loud thud was sounded; probably wood colliding with something equally hard, "While there's also a perfectly good couch behind you?"

With the grace and speed of a falcon, I wordlessly sat up, before dusting imaginary dust off my shirt. Ah, the loud thud from earlier were just drinks that Hachiman brought. Wait! Why was he looking at me like that? Was he trying to get me to say something? I mean, from what I heard, he is pretty asocial after all, so maybe it was up to me to make some small talks with him.

Even if I'm horrible at it.

"Umm…well, ya see…"

I racked my brain for some suitable topics to converse with him. He looked at him in confusion as he slowly made his way around the short table before sitting in front of me.

"It's okay. I did say 'Make yourself at home' after all." Hachiman said.

"A-Aha, I see…"

No, I couldn't face him now. It would be too awkward, not to mention, extremely weird. If a teenage girl that you invited went and rolled all over your carpet, what sort of face would you make? Disgust? Contempt? That weird mix between pity and confusion? No, I couldn't bear to see that face. It would be too much.

"Have a drink. You're thirsty, aren't you?" Hachiman handed me a glass of oolong tea. I took it gratefully before downing it down. Climbing up six flights of stairs will do that to you.

He seemed strangely nice compared to the last time we met. I know that people can change, but to see _him_ of all people changing was a bit unnerving.

"So," He began talking, taking a sip of his own glass of tea, "It's been a while, huh?"

Ah, the good ol' reminiscing-about-the-past talk. A bit surprising coming from Hachiman since he seems like the kind of person to hate small talks, but maybe, he was just making exceptions for a past friend/acquaintance such as myself.

"Yup! Since the Christmas party, I believe." I replied, a bit too cheerfully for my taste. I quickly coughed into my hands to compose myself.

But he seemed to have not hear it as he continued reminiscing, "How long ago was that? Ten years or so?"

"Six years," I corrected him, "I mean, is it really that hard to remember when you were a second year and subtract the current year by that year?"

Mathematics is one of my strongest subjects after all, so it couldn't be helped if I sometimes go off on a tangent; even if it's just simple arithmetics. But in doing so, I seemed to have unnerved Hachiman, if the blank look on his face was any indication.

"You know…high school is just one insignificant drop in the vast ocean you call life."

Ugh, doesn't he cringe when he thinks up of all those deep, profound but ultimately meaningless metaphor? Like really, it sounded like it should belong on a shallow social media post.

"Besides, why would I have that near-fail of a Christmas party as my focal point when thinking about high school?"

"Hey! That party didn't fail!" I exclaimed, once again, too emotionally for my own taste.

Rubbing his head with a sigh, Hachiman replied, "That's why I said near-fail. Not that a kid like you could've understood what went on behind the scenes anyway."

Gritting my teeth in order to stop myself from assaulting him, I thought back to that Christmas party. Even as a kid, I could still see the dysfunctional system that plagued the organization of the workload. I distinctly remembered that one guy who just kept on moving his hands in weird manners as he ordered us around.

I never did get his name, but I've affectionately called him Mr. Jazz Hands.

Not that anyone knows about that nickname though…

As if sensing my discomfort, Hachiman tried to fix the situation by uttering a few words of encouragement.

"If it's any consolation, your performance on the stage was charming, to say the least."

Words of encouragement that would've been useful six years ago…

And what did he mean by charming? Did he actually see my singing? Definitely not what I call charming. Unless 'charming' was just a cover up word for something else? According to Google-san, the word 'charming' can also be substituted with 'endearing', which itself can be substituted with 'cute' as well.

Was he (indirectly) telling me that I was cute back then?!

But wait, if it was indeed a cover up, then it should be the opposite, right? Therefore, using that logic and the persistent sarcasm present in Hachiman, one could only assume that he was telling me that I _wasn't_ cute during the Christmas party.

What the hell, Hachiman?!

"Why are you looking at me like that?" asked Hachiman.

"…I was resting my eyes," I looked away from him, "Being out in the hot summer sun does that to you."

"By glaring at me?"

I instinctively pursed my lips, "I…have a peculiar medical conditions which forces me to glare."

"Right…" said Hachiman in a resigned tone, before switching to a more serious one, "Anyway, let's stop beating around the bush and cut to the chase."

"Okay?"

"Alright. So what are we going to do about you being here?"

I raised an eyebrow, "I thought Hiratsuka-sensei made it painfully clear that I was going to be studying under you."

Sighing, Hachiman replied with a shake of his head, "But it's not like you want to be here, right?"

"Well, that's…"

 _Kinda, sorta, maybe, probably not true…_

"You're stuck here not of your own accord, and I'm stuck with you not because I want to either."

Wait, stuck with me? Am I really that bad? Sure, from how I was acting, one might say that I was being overly friendly with someone I haven't seen in over six years, but that can be forgiven, right? After all, we _are_ technically acquaintances, and students of the same teacher.

"And I was thinking that you could just go straight back to Chiba."

Wait, what?

"Huh?"

"I don't think I stuttered." Hachiman said.

"Well, no, you didn't...but that's not the point!" I rebutted, "I mean, if I go back, won't Hiratsuka-sensei find out?"

In response, he crossed his arms while looking at me weirdly.

"Hiratsuka-sensei can be intrusive sometimes, but even she won't go to the trouble of following your every moves, y'know?"

"True…"

"Don't tell me…you actually want to study with me."

 _W-W-What?_

But since I am a person who is always in control of her emotions, I merely gave a rough cough in order to buy myself some time to calm down. It worked flawlessly, as it should, and I was able to respond without a hassle.

"As much as I hate to admit it, my modern literature prowess is a bit…lacking," I carefully chose my words, "I also hate to admit this, but Hiratsuka-sensei has a rather keen eye for talent; so if she chose you to teach me, then you must be great at doing so."

Hachiman heaved out a sigh, rubbing his neck sheepishly, "Look. Just because someone's good at doing something, doesn't mean they're good at teaching that _something_."

"But couldn't you at least try?" I asked, my voice hopeful for some reason. Wait, why was I trying to convince him to teach me anyway? It wasn't like we had an extremely close bond or anything…but then again, I always felt this strange sense of familiarity around him.

Anyway, it was too late to back out so I might as well go all in trying to convince him.

"Why do you even want me to teach you anyway?"

Ah crap, he hit the nail right on the head.

"My teaching methods aren't exactly orthodox." He explained.

Puffing my chest slightly, I responded. "Well, I thrive on a good challenge."

Just as I said that, his face appeared to have visibly dropped, as if mocking me. He stayed silent for a couple of seconds, staring at me. I did the same to him, only because it was too awkward to stare away.

"You'll get bored in one hour." He said blankly.

"One hour?" I repeated incredulously, "I'm not the kind of girl who'd get bored sitting in one spot for one measly hour."

Nodding ever so slightly, Hachiman replied, "Yeah, you're right. You'll probably get bored in 30 minutes anyway."

My right eye twitched uncontrollably as the urge to punch him rose. No, that wouldn't do. I don't want to be classified as a minor who assaults a middle aged man.

"Trust me." I said, gritting my teeth, "I'm more than used to sitting in one spot for long period of time."

"Oh really now?" He asked sarcastically, "Then why don't you just gather a couple of friends and make a group study session?"

Friends…Friends?

That word sounded really odd. I was sure that it wasn't a case of déjà vu, since I obviously know it, but just thinking about it irked me. Mainly because of my experience with 'friends' in the past, but that was an extremely long time ago.

Since I wasn't replying for a good amount of time, Hachiman scooted closer to me and waved his hand in front of my face. Once he noticed that I wasn't off in my own little word anymore, he pulled back, his face obviously waiting for a response.

I coughed in order to buy some time again.

"Well…about that…" I drawled off, buying myself more time than ever, "It's a really…touchy and complicated subject, y'know?"

I tried my best to put on a façade of apathy, but I wasn't sure if it worked or not, seeing as Hachiman's face contorted into one of exasperation.

He soon followed that up with a heavy sigh.

"Rumi, it's been 10 years." He began.

"6 years." I corrected him swiftly.

"Thank you, but that's not my point," Hachiman rubbed his face in disbelief. I already knew what he was going to talking about. Hiratsuka-sensei made sure to ingrain that experience into my brain after all.

"It's literally impossible to not make one acquaintance or friend during middle and high school."

I couldn't really come up with an excu-I mean, reason so I just shrugged nonchalantly.

"Ya know what they say; 'Never say never'…right?"

It was as if something suddenly died in the room as Hachiman's face just froze up with pity. Not even the good kind of pity, mind you, but the kind you give to someone who tries their hardest to do something but still suck at doing that something.

Ehem…not me, of course.

"I don't know if I should applaud you or…" He sighed, rubbing his face in disappointment, "Alright, look."

Taking a deep breath, and without looking at me, he said, "We'll have a trial lesson for today, and if things don't work out, then we can just tell Hiratsuka-sensei that it won't work out. And on the off chance that it does work out, we'd already crossed out one day of work. Sounds good?"

Really? He was going to teach me? I didn't expect him to crack so easily but I wasn't going to complain any time soon. After all these years and we'd finally have some alone time together – I mean, study time together. Hachiman also made a good point about getting an early start. Though I preferred to spend more time with him – to study under his tutelage, obviously – I guess even Hachiman needs his own family bonding time.

And since he's good at modern literature, then my grades would definitely improve without a doubt. Heh, getting to spend time with someone that I don't necessarily dislike _and_ having my grades improved? Sounds too good to be true.

Coughing into my hand, I gave him a courteous response, "Well…if you insist; I guess I wouldn't mind."

"Right…" He looked at me weirdly before asking, "You have any papers?"

"No, why?" I asked him, confused.

"I was thinking of having you write an essay."

"Oh…now?"

"Yeah, now." He replied.

Huh…now, huh?

"Wait, what?!" I brought my hands down hard on the short table, shaking the glasses of oolong tea in the process, "Now? You can't just expect me to jump right into that! What about syntax? Proper grammar and structure? Conjunctions? Formal, academic words?"

Calmly taking a sip of his drink, Hachiman replied, "Obviously, I can't teach you if I don't know what level you're at. It's okay; it's not like I'll judge you that much."

I looked at him in exasperation, "There's no way I can write an essay on the spot."

Holding up two fingers, he replied, "I'll give you two hours, half an hour more than the standard allotted time for literature exams. That's enough, isn't it?"

"Well…" I sulked, trying to think up of excuses to delay my inevitable boredom and frustration of essay writing. "I mean…fine…"

"Good to know," Hachiman smiled, before pushing himself off the floor, "Wait here, I'll go get some draft papers. Get some drinks from the fridge if you want."

"Oh, sure." I replied, before being left awkwardly sitting in the living room. Well, I might as well get comfortable. I was going to sit here for the next two hours anyway…

Crap, I did not think this through.

Two hours? Two goddamn hours of being stuck in one place? No, no, no. I can't have that. I'm a high school girl in the prime of her youth; I can't just be stuck sitting in one place for over an hour. It'll be bad for my spine, which can affect my gaming capability later on!

…Gaming requires tiny movements so my spine won't be hurt…right?

Argh! Why do I always rush in without thinking? Was the thought of studying with - I mean under Hachiman that enticing? Did I lose track of my own goal? What was even my goal in the first place?! He made complete sense when he said that Hiratsuka-sensei won't pester me about this extra study session so why didn't I just take the easy way out?!

 _...I want to die…_

Feeling myself dehydrated, I reached over to the glass of ice cold oolong tea to take a sip, yet when I did so, my lips came into contact with nothing. Because of my thirst, I had gulped down the entire glass without conserving even a single drop.

Crap…even if he did say that he was okay with me getting some drinks, it would still be awkward, yeah? But then again, it _wouldn't_ be awkward if I took a drink from his fridge while he wasn't here, right? Nope, definitely not. I definitely wouldn't look like a burglar, right? Nope, definitely not.

 _I'll just sneak over there..._

Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I tiptoed my way over to his kitchen area, before looking for the fridge. It was hard to miss since it looked really expensive. Should I really be taking stuff from this fridge? What if I broke it? Would I have to pay for it? Wait, if this fridge is indeed expensive, then it should be extremely durable as well, right? Like…Able-to-survive-a-nuclear-blast durable.

I turned around just in case Hachiman came back. Seeing no signs of him, I gingerly grasped the handle of the fridge before pulling it and letting the frigid air out. I audibly sighed when the cold air hit me.

There's never such a thing as being too cold after all. Ah, if only Japan's climate could be cool all year round. That would be the greatest thing ever. The ramifications of the region being in such a cold climate might affect our agricultural sector, but who cares? The world's warming up anyway, right?

But in my enjoyment of the cold air emanating from the fridge, I once again failed to notice the presence of another human being just behind me. By the time I did, however, I did not dare to turn around…because it was a lose-lose situation for me anyway.

I internally groaned. The fridge in front of me might be cooling me down, but I certainly didn't look cool to him.

"So…" Hachiman started dubiously, "Find any drinks you like?"

Sensing that he was trying to give me a way out, I quickly seized the chance and a random drink from the fridge, and showed it to Hachiman in a faux display of pride.

"Y-Yeah, of course. I was just admiring the fact that you had…" I looked at the label, "Max…coffee? Yeah, I'm a really big fan of this brand, so it's a relief that you had some in your fridge, y'know."

If Hachiman knew that I was bluffing, he certainly didn't show it as he merely hummed in approval.

"Good choice." He simply said, moving towards the short table that I was sitting at earlier.

I followed suite with a canned coffee in hand. I never really had actual coffee before. But does coffee-flavored ice cream count? It should, shouldn't it? Otherwise, why would it be named coffee-flavored? Of course, that logic is redundant since big corporations would do anything to attract potential youthful customers such as myself.

Hachiman put a few papers and pens on the table, gesturing me to come sit near him. I obliged, but was immediately hit with confusion.

"What?"

"Excellent question, indeed."

I glared at him. You shouldn't mock a student, y'know.

"So are you going to tell me or…?"

"Yeah, I was getting to that," He held his chin in one of his hands, "I was just thinking of a topic."

"Topic for what, exactly?"

Instead of replying, like a courteous person would, Hachiman opted to stare at the ceiling instead, appearing to be contemplating something.

"Say…what do you like?" Hachiman asked.

Almost instinctively, I replied.

"You."

 _NO, CRAP, WAIT!_

"Me?" Hachiman pointed to himself, confused.

"N-NO, OF COURSE NOT!" I frantically waved my arms around in denial, "I meant the movie! You know? That movie!"

"That movie?" He looked at me quizzically.

"Y-Yeah! You know…You-r Name; yeah, it's called _Your Name_!" I mentally patted myself on the back for the quick diversion, "The super awesome, though admittedly over-hyped, movie that came out last year! You didn't let me finish the whole thing. Jeez, Hachiman; stop being so hasty already, aha…"

I sheepishly rubbed the back of my neck, my eyes already focused on anything not named Hachiman. Unfortunately though, curiosity got the better of me as I took a quick peek and saw that judgmental look that only Hachiman was capable of.

Goddamn it, me…

"Right…" He hesitantly accepted the answer, "What's the movie about then?"

"Oh, well…" I tried to recall the movie to the best of my abilities, "I think it's about…dealing with bad things that aren't in your control…or maybe, it's about having to deal with loving someone you can't see…"

It was a good movie. Tear-jerking, heart piercing and above all, breathtaking. Ah, if I was a movie critic, I'd bet that line would've made it in the top ten reviews of all time. Probably.

"I see, I see." Hachiman nodded in confirmation, "Too vague to write about."

"Huh?"

Sensing my confusion, Hachiman explained, "I was going to make you write an analytical essay on whatever you like, but I guess it's too hard to come up with an idea. Worst case scenario, you'd probably half-assed it."

"Hey! I do not half-ass thing," I rebutted. If I take pride in anything, it's my hard work, "If I do something, then I put one hundred percent into it!"

"Really now? A hundred percent into anything?"

I nodded, eyes locked in a battle with Hachiman's own pair, who didn't betray any emotions.

"I did not stutter."

"But just to be safe…anything? No exceptions? No exclusions?"

Despite his stoic face, I could almost feel the smirk behind that mask of his. That smug smirk…

"And like I said, I did not stutter." I repeated what I said, really hammering the point home.

"If that's how it is then…" He gave a resigned smirk and a shrug as he pushed himself off the floor, "Then your topic for today is simple."

I gulped. Whatever it will be, I'll be putting in more than a hundred percent. To prove him wrong and wipe that smug smirk off his face, I'll go beyond…

PLUS ULTRA! **[3]**

Hachiman then said, "You'll be writing about the cultural significance of Mount Fuji in modern literature."

"Objection."

"Objection overruled," He shot me down in an instant.

"Tch."

"Use whatever resources you can find to build up your ideas. Forums, websites, research papers; anything is allowed."

"I feel like you're oppressing my rights as a student." I mumbled.

"Trust me; this is for your own good."

"Pssh, yeah right…" I gave him a half-hearted glare. I knew it was for my own good, but it didn't mean that it felt good though. Rather, it was the opposite.

"Alright then," He turned around and began walking to, presumably, his bedroom, "I'm just gonna work on something for a while. If you have any questions, give a knock, got it?"

Without facing him, I merely let out a drawn out "Suuuuuuuuure."

But as I expected, the moment he was gone, my head began turning into a storm. Wait…is that why they call it brainstorming? Wait, no, that's not the point right now. The state of my mind was a cataclysm. Everything was chaotic. What can I write about? Mount Fuji? Who gives a shit about Mount Fuji? I certainly don't.

And not to mention, what kind of modern literary work uses Mount Fuji as their inspiration anyway? That's total and utter bullcrap.

I was sorely tempted to knock on his door, but stopped myself short of doing so. No, doing that would be like admitting he was right, and not to mention, that I was not smart.

Letting out a big sigh, I (gently) slapped myself on both of my cheeks before grabbing a pen with an iron resolution.

It'll be a cold day in hell before he thinks that of me.

* * *

 _I want to die…_

 _Someone, please end me already…_

Those two thoughts constantly popped up as I sluggishly moved my pen across the paper. You know, if in the off chance that we catch a spy from another country who is stealing valuable state secrets, we shouldn't torture him using electric chairs, waterboarding or whipping. Instead, we should make him write essays on Mount Fuji. I'm sure that that method would even make the toughest of spies break down.

"Ugh…" I groaned, my cheek laid flat on the table. I've been in this position for more than 30 minutes now. There was just no way that I could sit up straight when doing such a boring task. I know the rubric to this kind of essay, but I couldn't think up of any interesting ideas for it.

But even though I say that, I have to say, my essay right now looked pretty damn good, if I do say so myself. Neat letters, carefully divided paragraph, usage of pandering, nationalistic terms; this had the making of a great essay.

Well, I mean…I am me, after all. And if I even make an effort at doing something, then I would do a pretty good job. Oh, Rumi, you're so humble.

I'd bet that when Hachiman see this amazing literary piece, even he would be baffled.

Giving a short chuckle to myself as I put the finishing touches on my essay, I spotted the door to Hachiman's bedroom being opened, and soon, the man himself walked out of it.

He went to the fridge to get a couple of drinks, hopefully, not Max coffee since, that stuff was too sweet, and made his way over to me.

"Are you finished yet?"

Giving a satisfied snort, I nodded proudly, handing him my paper, "Of course, I did."

"I see," He gave a quick glance before giving me a can of…orange juice? Canned _orange juice_? What kind of monster did this?!

But I couldn't really complain; after all, I need something to wash down this overly abundant sweetness coming from the Max coffee I downed earlier.

Sitting beside me, Hachiman began reading the essay. I didn't really have anything to do except sipping the drink he offered, and so, I did just that. Quietly though as to not disturb him.

After a while, and with my drink being almost empty, I asked him.

"So…what do you think?"

Without looking at me, he simply replied, "I'm not done reading yet."

"Oh, okay then." And I resumed taking small sips from my drink.

Now that it was just the two of us, I began noticing how he changed over the years. I mean, I couldn't really compare the current Hachiman with the Hachiman two years ago, but if I were to make a comparison with the Hachiman _six_ years ago, then he certainly changed.

He now has this unexplainable aura of maturity around him. I can't really explain what it is, but I know it's there. Maybe, it's his hair. It's gotten a tad bit longer. Instead of that unruly mop of hair that he had six years ago, his hair right now is more…controlled. It's still kinda messy, but in a controlled way…controlled chaos?

Huh, I guess that would be a good way to describe Hachiman. His face no longer showed that immature, snarky personality that he had, but in its place, was a calm, focused one. His jawline might've something to do with it, but I wouldn't know. I never took facial analysis 101 after all.

"Is there something on my face?"

"Eh?"

My face burned up immediately. Because I was too distracted by analyzing Hachiman's weirdly mature face, I didn't notice that we were doing essay analysis. God damn it, he must think that I'm some sort of pervert now. I swear I wasn't ogling at you!

"N-No, I was just…" My brain ran through its box of excuses, "Resting my eyes, that's all."

"Is that so?" He looked back at the paper, and said, "It's a coincidence that your eyes just happened to be resting on my face, huh?"

Nodding stiffly, I responded, "Yup."

"Alright then," He brushed aside the topic, "Anyway, as for your essay…I…well…"

But no words came out from his mouth.

 _Heh._

Seeing Hachiman – The HACHIMAN – of all people not being able to find words to describe my essay was honestly amazing. I knew that my essay was good, but I didn't actually think that it would make Hachiman speechless.

With confidence, I asked, "Well, you're baffled, aren't you?"

 _Aren't you?!_

Sheesh, even my subconscious couldn't contain its excitement. Well, to be frank, even I was kinda excited. Ah, if it wasn't for my humbleness, I would've just urged Hachiman to praise me already.

 _So praise me, dammit!_

"I'm baffled, alright." He widened his eyes for dramatic effect.

I gave a sigh. Just couldn't be honest, could ya, Hachiman?

"Baffled at how utterly incomprehensible this thing is."

I nodded at his praise. Surely, he could-

Wait, what?

"Umm, can you repeat this please?"

Raising an eyebrow at my perfectly reasonable question, he instead said.

"In short, this essay is bad."

Digesting this new information in, I quickly retorted soon after.

"Wait, wait, wait, what do you mean?! I'm pretty sure that what I wrote was completely passable."

"Barely passable," He commented, "If I was a teacher, this would've gotten an E, without a doubt."

"B-But…"

Looking at me weirdly, he asked. "You still can't believe it? Well, let me show you."

He beckoned me to get closer to him, and I did so wordlessly, weirdly pissed off at the situation.

"First off, your there's nothing wrong with your introduction but,"

"Then why-?!"

"Let me finish," He interrupted me calmly, "It's generic. It's the most generic opener I've ever seen. An introduction must be able to capture the reader's attention, and yours…well, it's sleep inducing, to put it lightly."

"Ugh…" I groaned. Already off to a bad start on the first paragraph? Not good at all.

"Save your sighs. We're not done yet."

I looked at him exasperatedly. God, I didn't know Hachiman was ever this harsh.

But he was right. That was just the beginning of it all. He later chastised me on my weird syntax, unusual use of words, and he even berated me on using films as a source of reference! His reasoning was that it's not modern literature.

That's bullshit! Movies are just scripts acted out by actors, and a script is technically a piece of literature, right?! I would have to confirm this with Hiratsuka-sensei later though.

There were other things he criticized me for, but about 10 minutes in, I already zoned out. There was just too much information to digest. I couldn't even sigh or groan; my energy was far too depleted by his endless barrage of criticisms in the first 10 minutes.

When we were done – though I think it was because he noticed my fleeting attention – I was visibly drained. My eyes were blank and unfocused, and I couldn't even force myself to sit up straight as I fell down onto the soft carpet below.

Hachiman watched wordlessly before asking.

"So…learned anything today?"

Staring blankly at the ceiling, I replied, "I learned too much for one day."

"That's good."

"…no it's not…" I muttered under my breath.

"Anyway, it's about time, isn't it?" I noticed him checking his wristwatch.

"Time for what?" I asked in trepidation, "Another essay?"

Looking at me quizzically, he said, "No, time for you to go home. It's already half past seven."

Half past seven…? Oh, seven thirty. Right…I should get going, huh?

Using every ounce of strength left in my body, I forced myself to sit up. Pumping myself up again, I eventually pushed myself off the carpet.

"Go wash your face." Was Hachiman's simple advice, which I took wordlessly.

When I got back out of the bathroom, Hachiman was standing by the open door, checking his phone with one hand while the other was holding a bag. I guess he's gonna walk me to the station then run some errands? Not that I mind, but with my current mental state, I doubt we could have any meaningful conversations.

Well, whatever, right? At least, I get to spend more time with him, and hey, maybe he'd be the one to start the conversation.

We rode the elevator down this time (Thank god), but as I'd expected there were no words exchanged between us. It felt a bit awkward, but my mentally deprived brain was too mentally deprived to mentally think up of some words.

When we walked out of the apartment complex, I began to notice that Hachiman disappeared on me. Either my brain was playing tricks on me or…he went back to his room. Both possibility was bad, since I didn't really know where the station was, considering I'd never been to the Saitama prefecture before in my life.

I sighed and wordlessly cursed at the summer night.

Well, worst case scenario, I could always use my phone.

However, before I could open the GPS, a car pulled up in front of me. I didn't even see it coming, though I guessed that must've been due to my mentally drained brain. I thought it was a taxi at first, but a quick look at the apparent lack of taxi sign proved otherwise.

I've heard tales of random cars pulling up to kids in order to offer them candies, then those kids would be kidnapped and held for ransoms. But even thought I thought that, I was far too tired to move.

However, it seemed that I didn't need to, as one of the car's windows lowered down, and a very familiar man asked me.

"Well, are you getting in or not?"

I looked at Hachiman blankly, while he stared at me in confusion. Realizing why Hachiman was gone a few minutes ago, I let out an 'Ooh…', which prompted even more confusion from Hachiman.

Taking him up on his offer, I made my way over to the other side of the car, and quickly got into it. I didn't know he had a car, but well, whatever, right? It was far better for my legs compared to walking all the way to the station. Not to mention, I won't have to be on alert all the time if Hachiman was with me, AND, I can actually rest my brain!

Win-Win!

As soon as I got the seatbelt on, my body instinctively reclined the seat, and immediately crashed right into it, not even caring about how awkward it was towards Hachiman. I couldn't help it, okay? Being betrayed by my own teacher, then getting berated by someone you used to look up to really hurt a young girl's brain.

Hachiman, being Hachiman, kept quiet and began driving.

The drive was silent, save for the honking and engines of the other cars, but other than that, there was only strange, calm silence. But after ten minutes of that silence, I was faced with a dilemma.

No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't fall asleep.

My eyes were burning and they were begging my brain to be turned off, but as hard as I tried to close them up, I just couldn't fall asleep. Maybe, it was because of the gentle, rocking motion of the car, or it was due to the fact that a certain someone was here.

I gave a quick glance to Hachiman. He was still looking at the road ahead, looking as nonchalant as ever. Does he even know how to emote? Even though there's a perfectly cute girl sitting right next to him? Tch, what is he; a stone pitbull?

"You've been quieter than usual, Rumi." Hachiman spoke up.

Realizing that I wasn't going to get any sleep soon, I pulled up my seat. "I don't think we're around each other that much to qualify my silence as more _than usual."_

"Fine then. You're quieter compared to this afternoon. Better?"

"Hmph." I turned away from him to look at the flashing traffic lights, "Being berated will do that to any people."

"It's called constructive criticism, Rumi."

Why did he keep using me name like that? It sounded so weird. Not that I hate it though.

"I'm not a builder, okay? I can't construct anything out of criticisms."

"Then you need to learn that skill pretty soon," He paused to make a turn, "You'll need it more than you'd like."

"Hmph."

"Also, you're a Sobu high student now, huh?"

"Obviously."

"But why Sobu?"

Letting out a sigh, I replied, "How would you feel if I said it's because I wanted to meet you again?"

Hachiman was certainly surprised, if his few seconds of silence was any indication. But he quickly composed himself and gave me an appropriate response.

"I would certainly be flattered, but that's just flat out impossible."

"You're damn right it is," I affirmed his thoughts, "I only go there because my parents' jobs forced us to move."

"Ah, I see. Well, how is it there?"

"Average." I responded instantly.

"Really now? Have you joined any club? Like…the Service club, for example?"

 _Service whaaa…_

"What kind of stupid club name is that?" I asked in disbelief.

"Heh, you're right. Never mind then." I could see a wistful look on his face, but it vanished as soon as it appeared, "Did you make any friends?"

"Rumi?"

"…if by friends, you mean classmates, then yes?" I answered dubiously.

"I thought you were joking earlier..." Hachiman said, his voice laced with disappointment, "You're really fitting right into the unapproachable loner archetype, y'know."

"Hey! I'm approachable, alright?" I retorted, though that loner part was irrefutable, "If someone wants to strike up a conversation with me, then I'll have no problem responding."

"Eh, is that so?"

Pouting ever so slightly, I answered, "It is so. And why are we even talking about me anyway?! What about you?!"

"What about me?"

I narrowed my eyes, though I was sure he couldn't see them anyways, "Why are you living in Saitama anyway? Don't tell me you have a girlfriend living here."

"And what if I do?"

 _E-Eh?_

"W-Well…" I couldn't really respond to that. After all, if he does have a girlfriend, then it's none of my business.

…but he didn't have to put it so bluntly…

A sigh was sounded.

"I'm only here because of my job, alright? No girlfriend, no wife, no lovers; nothing."

"Oh…" Wait, he sounded way too fishy, "Then why the hell do you have a 2LDK apartment?"

He sighed again, "I only got it because the price was affordable; plus, the extra room helps a lot when there are guests."

"Really now?"

"Really."

Well, this was awkward. I had planned to interrogate him and use all of my questioning prowess to force some information out of him, but alas, it seemed like we were at a stalemate.

"You know…"

"Hn?"

"You're more talkative than usual today."

"Rumi," He began, though I already knew how he was going to respond, "I don't think we hung out that-,"

"Okay, fine! You're more talkative today compared to the last time we met. _Better_?"

Even though I mocked his voice, he merely gave a small chuckle, "I was just teasing, alright?"

"Hmph."

Even though I was slightly pissed off at Hachiman, this conversation that I had with him somehow relaxed me. It was like a lullaby, lulling me to sleep every few seconds. And as if he had a sixth sense, Hachiman then said.

"You should go to sleep for now. It's gonna be a long time before we reach Chiba."

"I knew that…" I grumpily responded, before reclining the seat and taking a well-deserved nap.

This time, though, I was able to fall asleep.

* * *

Now, despite having said that I was able to fall asleep, I wasn't able to _completely_ fall asleep though. Sure, my eyes were close, and my brain was steadily recharging itself, but due to the aforementioned rocking motion of the car, I was somehow able to sense what was going on while still sleeping.

I could sense when the car stopped, or when it was moving. Sometimes, I could even hear other cars honking at us, but I've never heard Hachiman mutter a single word. Not one.

And to be honest, it was strangely unnerving.

And before long, I could finally feel the car being stopped for good. I could definitely tell that we weren't in a traffic jam or caught by the police. Now that I think about, being caught by the police would definitely raise some red flags. Perhaps, I should've slept at the back of-,"

"Rumi, we're here."

I rose up like a zombie, my eyes still closed and my mouth feeling funny. Rubbing my eyes gingerly, I was able to look around with bleary vision. If he stopped the car, then we probably arrived in Chiba already. However, something wasn't right…

"Wait, where are we?" I asked, a bit panicked.

"I was waiting for you to ask that," Hachiman gave a very _unfunny_ chuckle, "A one hour ride from Saitama to Chiba, and now you're just wondering what's our destination?"

"I couldn't help it, okay? I was sleeping…" I mumbled.

"Well, before going back home, I think we should grab something to eat." Giving a second for me to digest this information in, he continued, "Besides, your stomach sounded pretty hungry during the ride."

Again, I took a second go understand what he said, but when I did, my face heated up and my hands immediately went to my stomach, covering it as trying to hide the shame that it brought to the Tsurumi family.

 _Et tu, stomach?_

"Let's go. It's my treat after all."

I silently followed him out of the car. The restaurant we were at was a ramen joint. I would've preferred somewhere classier or more familiar, but I guess since Hachiman was paying, I couldn't really complain. Beggars can't be choosers, right?

The restaurant he chose was surprisingly packed to the brim with people. I said this, because who eats ramen at 8 pm? Besides a couple of weirdo, of course (Not counting me). The people that were in here were mostly salarymen, university students, and the occasional normal family.

If I had to guess then these people must've wanted to take advantage of the summer holiday to fully enjoy themselves. I really couldn't blame them; I would've done the same thing, to be honest.

We somehow managed to find a table, but as soon as I sat down, I immediately rested my face on my hands. The sleep still wasn't completely out of my system just yet, and it was annoying. My eyes were still bleary, and I could feel the unfathomable weight of my head, waiting to slip out of my arms.

Hachiman, being Hachiman, repeated what he said earlier this evening.

"Go wash your face."

And just like earlier, I took his advice without a fuss.

Because the bathroom was quite a distance away from our table, and along with the fact that the restaurant was almost filled to the brim, I actually had to focus just to not bump into an unfortunate waiters.

I would've never guessed that I'd be having ramen for dinner at 8 pm.

Then again, I also would've never guessed that I'd be having a dinner date with Hachiman of all people.

 _Wait a minute…_

No, stupid Rumi! Not a dinner _date!_ Just dinner! Plain old dinner consisting of coming to a busy ramen joint! Nothing more, nothing less. Besides, I'm sure that Hachiman doesn't see me that way. How could he, right? After all, we hadn't seen each other for more than six years, and even if by the off chance that one of us considered this as a dinner date, I'm sure as hell it's not Hachiman.

Therefore, I should respect his wishes and also consider this a normal dinner. With no _date_.

 _Ugh…stupid sleep-deprived brain…_

Because of my musings, I wasn't able to keep my focus on avoiding people, and not surprisingly, I eventually bumped into someone. Fortunately for me, it wasn't a waiter carrying a piping hot bowl of ramen; so guilt and burns avoided.

"Ah, sorry about that." I quickly said before going on my way.

Before I did though, the person I bumped into said something that caught my attention.

"Rumi?"

Namely…my name.

Hearing those two syllables being uttered by a rather feminine voice caused my head to turn around to the source. At first, I thought it was a certain classmate of mine, who was quite persistent at hanging out with me, but that voice was too mature to belong to a teenager. So I thought of Hiratsuka-sensei. Surely, someone like her would enjoy going to a ramen joint like this one.

But when I saw the woman's face, and my own face dropped. For once, I would be glad to see Hiratsuka-sensei, but apparently, that wasn't the case.

"…mom?"

Damn it, Hachiman. Why didn't we eat at Saize?

* * *

 **References:**

 **[1: A parody of Bo Burnham's poem called 'Dad'. This guy's awesome, so go watch his comedy special if you have the chance.**

 **[2: A line from Kyon in episode 4(Chronologically) from the Haruhi Suzumiya series.**

 **[3: Motto of U.A High school from Boku no Hero Academia.**

 **Well then, hope you enjoy this last chapter for the year, and I hope to see you all again next year. Ciao!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: In Which Studying is Annoying (In More Ways than One)**

It was a cold, dark night in Chiba.

The temperature on my phone read 27 degree Celsius despite it being the middle of summer. Normally, it was the sort of temperature that I love, as it doesn't make my sweat my entire body weight or make my teeth shake with the ferocity of a jackhammer.

Nevertheless, I've never felt my blood running so cold before.

"So, what did you say your name was again?"

I sneaked a peek at the target from the corners of my eyes. He was smiling, like some sort of idiot.

 _Don't do it._ I tried to communicate telepathically with him.

 _Don't do it, Hachiman._

I tried to again…but to no avail.

"It's Hikigaya Hachiman, Tsurumi-san."

 _Dammit!_

Why did I have to bump into her? Of all the people in this fairly packed restaurant, why did I have to bump into my mom?! Not to mention, why was she in a ramen joint with dad of all places? Shouldn't my parents be in some high-end restaurant, sipping on the finest of wines while their precious daughter was in another prefecture?

After that one innocent, little bump, I was brutally taken against my will towards the dreaded parents' table. It was there that I was interrogated with near perfect brutality. Of course, I tried to retaliate with thought-provoking questions such as:

'Why are you guys in a ramen joint?!' and

'Wait, are you guys on a date because I'm not home?'

But with the brutality of a bull, mom simply responded with a 'Are you here alone?'

Of course, this set up a dilemma. I could lie, and say that I was at this restaurant alone with no one to accompany me, but then I would be forced to awkwardly sit at the grown-ups' table, which would leave Hachiman all alone as a result, leading to him searching for me and causing awkwardness for everyone.

And I hate to say this, but it would probably cause some trouble for Hiratsuka-sensei as well for not 'watching over me'.

I could, instead, say that I came here with someone else, but she would interrogate me even further, which would lead to me giving away Hachiman's name, because my mom is just too damn good at pressuring a person.

Today was supposed to be a lucky day for me too…

However, right before all hope was lost, a knight with dead fish eyes came to my rescue!

…for about three seconds before he, too, succumbed to the social niceties that plagued adults everywhere.

And as a result, I found myself seated at a fairly small table with Hachiman by my side, and my parents right in front of us. The size of the table served to restrict my movements even more, which made me quite fidgety. The bowls of ramen on the table were appetizing, sure, but I didn't think it was right to make any sudden movements.

After all, being the responsible high school adult that I am, I tried my best to remain calm and stoic at this perilous situation.

…I tried.

"And you're Hiratsuka-sensei's…?"

"Assistant," Hachiman said, his face as composed as ever, "I'm her teaching assistant."

"I see, I see," Nodding her head slowly, Mom continued asking, "Wait, since you said that you're her assistant, which means you went to Sobu High school, correct?"

"Well…yes. She was my career counselor when I was still a high school student."

"That's wonderful!"

 _No, it's not, mom. Stop romanticizing everything._

"So you're aiming to be a teacher too then?"

"Ah, no," Hachiman replied calmly, betraying my expectations, "I already have a job. This teaching assistant position is just temporary."

Why won't they stop talking? This was borderline intelligence agency level of interrogation. Mom, you do not need to know all about his background!

"Oh really? Then where do you work?"

I had a hard time looking at Hachiman after each successive question from my mom. Would he think that I'm just as intrusive as mom is? Even if he did, he's probably too nice to say it right to my face. Not to mention, that would be just rude.

 _I'm really, really,_ _ **really**_ _sorry, Hachiman!_

"In Saitama."

Upon hearing that, my mom slightly gasped, "Isn't that a fair bit of distance away from Chiba?"

"The opportunities that I was offered there were just too good to pass up." replied Hachiman, almost robotically.

"I see, I see," After contemplating for a bit, mom continued her barrage of questions, "If you don't mind me aski-,"

A ringtone interrupted her before she could though.

"Ah, excuse me," Hachiman cut off my mom, his hand smoothly fishing out a phone from his pocket, "I need to take this call; if you don't mind."

"No, of course not! Go ahead."

Nodding with a courteous smile on his face, Hachiman left the table, and expertly maneuvered around the restaurant like some sort of parkour expert. I guess being a loner for that long teaches you some skills, huh?

But in any case, that phone call might as well be a sign of god's goodwill upon this Earth, and me! Mostly me.

I audibly sighed in relief once Hachiman was out of sight. My now cold ramen began to look really appetizing, but before I could dig in like the good-natured girl that I am, a question was thrown my way.

It was then that I realized that god's blessing was just a curse in disguise.

 _No, Hachiman! Come back! I don't want to get interrogated!_

"So, is he good?"

"What?"

"I asked if he's good at teaching," Dad asked, pushing up his glasses.

Figures. Of course, he would be the one to ask that.

Come on, dad. Your daughter was semi-forcefully taken to another prefecture for, like, half the day, and all you wanted to know was whether a tutor you haven't met once before is good at his job?

I know I'm a teenager, but I need some parental affection every now and then, y'know.

"Weeeelll, he's decent, I guess."

"Decent?"

Crap, I should've chosen my words better. In dad's language, 'decent' translates to 'mediocre' just like 'C' translates to 'Barely passing'.

"I mean, he's good!" I corrected myself, "He's _really_ good at teaching."

"And? What did he teach you?" Dad continued pressuring me.

"Modern literature."

"Interesting," Placing his chin on the back of his hands, dad said, "I suppose that's good. You never did well in literature after all."

"Ugh…"

"Compared to your current literature teacher," At the mention of Hiratsuka-sensei, I perked up, "How good is he?"

"Like…on a scale of one to ten?"

"Sure. You could say that."

"Ummm…" I really didn't want to say anything that might hurt Hachiman's feelings. Then again, he looked like he's devoid of any emotions soooooo…

"He's a solid eight."

"Eight?"

"Yup!" I replied with full confidence, "His methods take a bit of time to get used to since they are so…unorthodox, but I can manage."

"Unorthodox, you say…"

Hearing dad's grim tone, I quickly corrected my words again, "But to be honest, those unorthodox ways of teaching really, really put me on the spot so I actually got more creative! And yeah…I got more creative."

"I see."

Luckily, before either of my parents could ask me any more questions, Hachiman returned to our table, an air of competence still surrounding him.

"Sorry about that," He apologized with a professional cadence, "It was just my sister checking up on me."

Like last time, mom was the one responding to Hachiman.

"Oh, is she here in Chiba?"

"Yes, yes she is," replied Hachiman, "I'm actually visiting Chiba for the week."

"And I suppose you're going to be tutoring Rumi for the duration then?"

Giving a quick glance to me (For some strange reasons), Hachiman gave a reply.

"With your permission, of course."

OI! What the hell?! That didn't sound like a 'teaching assistant' asking permission to teach at all! It sounded like Hachiman was trying to get permission for me to go to Destiny Land with him!

I gave him a slight glare, but it seemed he didn't notice it. Damn you, Hachiman's thick skull.

"Of course!" Mom responded as jolly as ever, a real contrast to dad, who was just sitting there, brooding ever so menacingly.

Also, why did she say that? Wasn't it _my_ choice to make? After all, the subject at hand was whether or not Hachiman was going to tutor _me._ ME! Yet why did she respond for me?

Mom, I know that I really didn't have anything to complain about, but at least give me the illusion of choice. It would actually make me feel like I'm contributing to the conversation instead of sitting around doing nothing.

I just hoped Hachiman doesn't see me as a child because of this.

"Thank you, Tsurumi-san," Hachiman said courteously, "Though I'm afraid I need to leave early. It is quite late, and I don't want my sister to worry any further."

Every word that came out of Hachiman's mouth felt like it was lifted straight from a novel, where the character spouting off those words is a well-mannered aristocrat – which Hachiman certainly isn't.

I never knew he was so articulate. He is technically an adult, but I didn't expect him to be so…well-mannered. Honestly, I thought he was going to talk to my parents the same way he talked to me; but I guess he's too grown up for that.

Then again, dad's constant glares probably helped with that as well.

"Oh, it's no problem, Hikigaya-sensei."

 _Hikigaya-sensei?! Do I have to call him that from now on too?!_

"So, are you going to start teaching Rumi tomorrow then?" Mom asked.

"I don't see why not. I'll arrange the schedule with Rumi later," Hachiman replied, "If you don't mind, could I have some sort of contact information?"

"Of course!"

After exchanging his number with own, Hachiman thanked us for the meal (Which he somehow finished without me noticing), and left. Mom even tried to embarrass me by getting me to thank Hachiman for today. Of course, being the good girl that I am, I thanked him…quietly…in my head.

But was that it?

After all we've been through today, was he going to leave just like that? When he thanked us earlier, he didn't even specifically mention me. Sure, you could say that he had no reason to, but considering that we are close, personal acquaintances, shouldn't he at least say something to me?

I mean, I didn't technically say anything to him that would prompt a response, but he's the adult here. Shouldn't he be the one responsible for starting the conversation? Plus, Hachiman now seemed so sociable now that it was kinda scary.

But in the end, I didn't say anything to him. And as I watched him walk further and further away from our table, and ultimately through the glass door of the restaurant, I felt like…I should be doing something. I should be saying something to him.

And so I did.

"Mom, I need to talk to Hachiman."

"You mean Hikigaya-sensei?"

"Yes, yes. Hikigaya-sensei," I corrected myself, "Can I go talk to him? I think there's some parts of today's lessons that I didn't get."

Mom looked over to dad, as if asking for him to respond to me. Considering that dad is the one who's the most involved in my academics, I could see why he's the one responding.

"I don't see why not," Dad spoke calmly, "Just don't bother him too much. You can get him to explain the details tomorrow."

Feeling slightly invigorated, I thanked them before bolting towards the door.

By the time I got there, though, Hachiman was already in the middle of getting into his car. Since there was no one outside at the time beside us, I yelled as loud as I could.

"HACHIMAN!"

As expected, he stopped trying to get into his car, and turned towards me, the bored, apathetic expression that he always wore was on full display.

"You know…" He began as he walked towards me, "You didn't have to shout. I'm, like, four meters away from you."

I almost broke into a dumb grin at the sound of his crass statement, but I coughed it away. He shouldn't be able to see my face through the darkness of the night anyway.

"So? What do you need?" asked Hachiman, hands coolly planted into his jacket. And by 'coolly', I meant like a snob.

Because that was what he looked like. A snob.

"What? Do I need a reason to talk to my teacher?"

"I'm not your teacher," He poked my head playfully, "I'm just doing this to kill time for the week."

"Can't be honest, can you?" I shrugged.

"So…do you actually need anything or…?"

Upon realizing that I needed an excuse to see him, I frantically pulled out my phone, jutting it forward towards Hachiman.

"Phone number!" I yelled, "I need your phone number! For…y'know, when I want to contact you and stuff. Besides, sometimes, mom is on the house phone so if you have some important news for me, then I can't hear it during those times. And trust me, mom uses-,"

"Rumi, slow down. You're not a 12 year old."

At Hachiman's request, I slowed down to a complete stop.

"You do realize that you can just get my number from your parents?" Hachiman said, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

I, too, scrunched my eyebrows in confusion, then in realization, and finally…in embarrassment.

"I…uh…" My brain failed me as no words sprung into my mind, "I…just…think?"

"Think?"

Seeing as there were a couple of words that finally decided to show up, I continued, "Think that…it's kinda rude and impersonal to…not see a person face to face when getting their number."

"Really?"

"Yup." I answered, my lips pursed together as I tried to put on a stoic front.

As a response, Hachiman didn't give a witty remark and any crude comments at all. Instead, he merely sighed as he covered his face with one of his hands.

"You know…" He removed his hand from his face, "You don't have to make such a crappy excuse just to see me."

"Ugh…" I winced at his statement, "It's not like I really want to see you. It's, like…uh, me wanting to see you off. Yeah…that."

Walking closer to me, he gave a calm smirk, "Really now? And here I thought my student was actually worried about me."

"Pssh, you're an adult, aren't you?" I crossed my arms in a huff. Why was Hachiman suddenly so suave?

"Right, right. Well, come on," He extended one of his hands towards me.

"Uh…what?"

"Your phone," He replied, deadpanned, "I can't give you my number if I don't have your phone, y'know."

"O-Oh, right," I quickly handed him my phone, and watched as he fiddled with it for a few seconds.

At that moment, I think it was due to the moonlight and whatnot, but Hachiman looked so gentle…when he's not spouting off crass statements, of course. I guess the only times where he looks remotely like a kind person is when he's not talking at all.

Which I don't mind. Silence is golden, after all.

"And done."

Hachiman said as he gave me back my phone. Just like he wordlessly promised, the phone was left on a contact screen with a new number on it, completed with the official seal of approval via the name 'Hikigaya Hachiman'.

Woah…I actually have his number now…

The endless possibilities that come with this singular number might just be too much for me. I could call him when I want, we could talk to each other whenever we want, and we could arrange meetings with each other whenever we want!

 _Stop it, Rumi. With great power, comes great responsibility, after all._

"So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then?" Hachiman asked, as he began to turn towards his car, "Since you have my number now, I'll just send you my schedule in the morning; so just pick any time you want."

"O-Oh…sure."

I was way too focused on this number. Then again, it felt like something was missing, so it wouldn't be wrong if I was focusing on this number, right? This felt just like earlier; when Hachiman was walking away from our table, except this time, he was an arm's reach away.

"Hachiman!" I shouted again, though, I lowered my voice a bit.

Evidently, he was startled by this as he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Turning around, he gave me a stink-eye, like I was eating away at his time or something…

Which I was, but that wasn't important.

"What now?" He asked with a tone of exasperation. Ugh, why did you have to sound that way? Now I felt bad for stopping you.

"P-Picture! For the contact!"

I jutted my phone forward once more, shouting a word that had been in the corner of my mind for a long time. It wasn't a word that I'd wanted to say, but it did its purpose of catching Hachiman's attention. Even though I expected him to give another witty retort, asking me why I needed a picture of him in the first place, he fortunately didn't do any of that.

Sighing, he reluctantly came back to me, "Fine, fine. Just hurry it up."

Feeling a smile encroaching on my face, I quickly tried to be as stoic as possible so Hachiman didn't think I was some immature kid who got giddy at the thought of getting a simple picture.

"R-Right!"

My fingers trembled as I opened the camera app. After taking in, and holding a deep breath, I pointed it at Hachiman, who was looking impassively at me.

 _It wouldn't hurt to smile, y'know._

But I didn't voice any complaint. After all, I'd already bothered him enough. Then, after what felt like an eternity of adjusting the camera's position to get a clear shot of Hachiman's face, I pressed a button, and lo and behold, Hachiman's picture was taken.

"Well, I hope you're actually done this time."

"Of course, I am!" I said in faux anger, "Sheesh, I only ate up, like, two minutes of your time. Besides, it's not like your sister's gonna worry about you or anything. You're an adult now!"

"That's not a valid excuse, y'know…" Giving another sigh, Hachiman finally turned around to his car, and began walking away, "Well, see you tomorrow then."

He waved at me, and I did the same in return. As he got into the car, Hachiman's nonchalant gaze landed on me once more, and he nodded…for some reason. It must be an adult thing, so I nodded as a response.

After watching him drive away towards god-knows-where, I was finally able to take in what had just happened. Since an epiphany was suddenly dawning on me, I turned on my phone, and went to my contact list.

With a few presses, I set Hachiman's contact picture as the one I took earlier.

I had an indescribable urge to call him right then and there. I mean, he was driving, but traffic was pretty bad so he should be stuck at a crossroad, right? Besides, I needed to test whether or not this was his number or not. It would be pretty embarrassing if I call a complete stranger tomorrow.

Taking in a deep breath, I called Hachiman, and waited with bated breath.

Within a few seconds, he picked up, but there was no sound. It looked like my fear of this being the wrong number was coming true, but just a few seconds later, it was dispelled with the cool voice of my dead-fish-eyed tutor.

"You do know I'm driving, right?"

"O-Of course, I do!" I retorted, "This is just a test call, okay?"

"Eh, is that so?" He replied nonchalantly.

"Yeah…" Since I didn't really have anything to talk about, I decided to cut our talk short, "So…umm, good night…I guess."

"Yeah. Good night to you too, Rumi," replied Hachiman, "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah…"

A click was sounded and our call ended, leaving my phone on the Hachiman's contact page, completed with his impassive gaze staring right at me.

I couldn't contain myself any longer as a grin broke out. Unable to contain this giddiness of mine, I unknowingly pumped my fist into the air as if I'd won the Summer Koshien. **[1]**

Then, as that energetic fist of mine came back down, I began questioning my sanity.

 _What the hell did I do that for?!_

* * *

I surveyed the prospective battlefield with a pair of ever keen eyes.

With just a glance, I could already tell that I had everything that I needed for the moment. A4 papers stacked neatly on top of a short table, along with some stationery that weren't used yet. Furthermore, just underneath said table was a couple packets of chips – I mean rations.

Yeah. Rations.

With a light huff of satisfaction, I turned towards the clock sitting on my desk. Its red, glowing numbers read **2** **:56pm**.

Perfect. With just four minutes remaining, I could basically patch up any holes in my preparation, such as if the dress that I was wearing was wrinkling or not.

This morning, when Hachiman contacted me, he gave me some choices regarding my study schedule. Of course, even the grogginess of waking up didn't stop me from making the right decision of choosing to study at 3:00pm. After all, it's the time where the human body is most active.

Surprisingly, he didn't ask me for my address, which prompted me to initiate that conversation instead.

Now, if someone – let's say Hiratsuka-sensei – saw my preparations, she would most likely say:

" _Why?"_

Yes, why? The simple question that every child, man, and woman ask each and every day.

Why would I go to such lengths because someone was coming to teach me?

Hmph, do those people not know the importance of first impressions?

…I mean, technically, this won't be our first time meeting, nor will it be our first meeting in recent memory either. But still, I don't want Hachiman to think that I'm a sloppy girl, alright?!

That would be bad, wouldn't it? Indeed, it would be.

But just as I began to enjoy the peace and quiet of a summer afternoon, the sound of a car speeding nearby caught my attention.

With elegance and grace, I made my way over to the single window inhabiting my room, and peeked out of it.

Last night, because of the darkness, I couldn't quite catch what Hachiman's car looked like, nor did I catch his license plate. However, I didn't need to recognize his car, because that same speeding car came to a crawl, before stopping completely in front of my house.

One of the car windows lowered down, revealing Hachiman's ever stoic face. He was looking at his phone and the house, probably to check if he was at the right location or not.

Being the thoughtful person that I am (I really am one), I closed the curtains, and rushed downstairs, intent on easing Hachiman's nerves. Ah, jeez, even an experienced loner like him can get nervous, huh?

Opening the door, I caught Hachiman just as he was about to press the bell.

"Ah…" He stared at me blankly, "Sup."

"Hmph, you sure took your time coming here," I said with faux anger.

In response, Hachiman just stared at me blankly again, like I was some sort of anomaly.

"I'm pretty sure I'm on time."

"Yeah, well…it's common courtesy to arrive five minutes before the meeting time, y'know?" I retorted.

"Right…" He said in exasperation, "So, you're not bringing any pens with you?"

Hearing Hachiman's rather strange question, I gave him a strange look. Why would I have a pen with me at all time? Wasn't that why I prepared my room upstairs? Unless he wanted to teach in the living room, which might be a bit inconvenient, but I was still okay with that.

"Uhh…they're upstairs?"

"Then go get them," Taking a look at his phone, he said, "We need to leave soon. The sooner we finish this, the more free time you'll have, right?"

"Right…" I replied absentmindedly before realizing what Hachiman actually said, "Wait, wait, wait. Leave to where? I thought we're gonna study."

"Yeah…and?"

No…it couldn't be…

"Hachiman," I began asking, "When you said that we're gonna study, you mean at my house…right?"

"What? No." He denied, an incredulous look on his face, "I said that we're going to the library. Didn't you check your messages?"

"Whaaaaat?!"

I pulled out my phone, intent on proving him wrong. There was no way that I would miss a message from Hachiman. I mean, he was the one who didn't ask for my address, so clearly, he was the delirious one not me.

"You're definitely lying."

"No, no I'm not." Hachiman replied calmly, ticking me off even more.

 _I'll show him!_

"There's no way that I-!"

It was then that I found out about a new message below the one I sent to Hachiman about my address.

 **|Why are you telling me this anyway? You can just meet me at the central library.|**

That was Hachiman's message; the one he sent after I'd went back to sleep in the morning.

…

…

… _shit._

Looking up in morbid curiosity, I found Hachiman with an indescribable face. It was a strange mix of pity, and exasperation. Not to mention, the disappointment emanating from his face was so palpable that I felt it piercing me.

A huge sigh escaped his lips, as Hachiman tried to soothe whatever headache was going to pop up.

"Just…get your things."

"Yessir."

With a mock salute, I ran upstairs and gathered all the necessary study materials into my bag faster than Hachiman could sigh again.

We wordlessly went into his car, and this silence continued all the way to the library. Because of this awkward silence, the occasional traffic stops were even more awkward than usual. Hachiman didn't say a word as he kept his eyes glued to the road, while I did the same; except I did it to not look at him and see his potentially annoyed face.

It wasn't my fault, okay?! You can't expect a high school student to _not_ sleep past 8 am!

The ride was relatively short, and since I didn't know where the library even was, it felt kind of exciting; like going to an amusement park…which have no rides, attractions and is a vacuum of fun in general.

…so the exact opposite of an amusement park, to be honest.

The library he brought me to was bigger than I expected, and if I were to be honest, was filled with more people than I'd anticipated. Granted, there weren't that many, but I certainly didn't think that people, especially students, would come here, of all places, during summer vacation.

Maybe they were stuck with an apathetic tutor like me too.

Upon entering the library, we were greeted by an overly welcoming voice.

"Ah, long time no see, Hikigaya-kun."

"It's nice to see you too, Sayori-san."

Hachiman replied to that same feminine voice with a surprising amount of friendliness. So surprising, in fact, that I instinctively surveyed the area for the source of the voice, because of all the times I've been with Hachiman (Which, admittedly, isn't a lot), I've never seen him use such friendly tone.

Courteous or formal voice? Sure. But certainly not one that would lead to jolly cooperation. **[2]**

Hachiman walked forward towards the front desk, which prompted me to follow suite, and subsequently see who was talking to him.

"Ah, jeez. Drop the –san already," _Sayori-_ san rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment, "So? What are you doing here today? I thought you moved to Saitama."

"Well, yeah…" Hachiman moved out of the way, allowing Sayori-san to meet me eye to eye.

"Oh my," She made a fake gasp, "Well, hello there, young miss."

 _Young miss? What is this, a J-drama?_

"…Hello." I responded firmly.

That woman soon shifted her attention towards Hachiman, asking him:

"So, is that your sister?"

Which prompted Hachiman to give her a confused look, "Sayori-san, you'd already seen Komachi. She would grow taller, not shrink."

 _ **Oi.**_

I glared at Hachiman intensely. What the hell did he mean by implying that I was shrinking? I'm not shrinking! I'm just a late bloomer!

"Oh, right, right!" Sayori-san waved off Hachiman's explanation, "So then, she's…?"

"Hmm…" Hachiman held his chin as he took a good look at me, "She's my student, I suppose."

"You're a teacher now?"

"Nah, this is just a temporary thing." replied Hachiman.

"Right," That woman now focused on to me, "Is she studying for her high school entrance exams then?"

…

…

This goddamn bitc-

"Unfortunately, she's already in high school," With a hint of chuckle in his voice, Hachiman interrupted me before I could lash out against this bimbo, "I'm just teaching her some things she didn't get in school."

"Ah, I see, I see," She gave a sickeningly sweet smile. Blegh, I felt like I got four types of diabetes just from seeing that alone.

"Your usual spot isn't taken, just so you know," Sayo- I mean, the woman told Hachiman sweetly, "Have fun~"

Usual spot? Hachiman sure has more surprises than I'd thought. While I knew that he was a bit studious, I didn't think he would have a 'usual spot' at the library of all places. I thought he hated places with lots of people?

Hachiman nodded at that woman's comment before briskly walking away towards his supposed spot. Y'know, for his age, Hachiman sure walked quite fast. I even had to jog a little bit just to catch up to him. I was sure that it was his fault that I was lagging behind, not my own lack of exercise.

Upon catching up to him, I finally asked him something that had been plaguing my mind since we arrived here.

"Hachiman."

"Hmm?" Hachiman kept on walking.

Deciding to not waste any time, I asked him, "So what's your relationship with that bitc- I mean…woman from earlier."

Hachiman looked back at me with one eyebrow raised, "Don't insult someone you'd just met."

I looked away. Hachiman's judging eyes were too judgmental for me.

"Well, I wouldn't if she didn't insult me first…"

At first, Hachiman didn't respond, and instead, walked to where I was instead. Initially, I thought he was going to give me another lecture on respect, or an assurance on how I'm perfect the way I am (Which I would definitely be fine with).

But this is Hachiman after all. Tact, especially with wonderful, young girls like me, is basically a non-existent concept to him.

"Rumi."

"What?"

Without a word, he brought his hand down and chopped my head harshly.

"Geh!"

"For the record, you _are_ short."

I glared at him harder. How could you, Hachiman? You were supposed to bring balance to my mental state, not leave it in the darkness! **[3]**

"And for your information, she's just a friend. Don't get any weird ideas." Hachiman warned, as he walked away.

"Hey, I didn't even say anything weird."

"I could sense it."

"What are you, a psychic?" I retorted, "Besides, the way you two talked was rather close, so I was just curious."

Sighing, Hachiman replied in exasperation, "That's because I used to hang out at the library at lot during senior years. And anyway, she's way above my age preference."

"Woah, seriously?!" I took a quick glance at the lady at the front. She looked like she was an ambitious 25 years old who wanted to give back to the community.

"Yup."

Being the little, curious critter that I am, I pressed Hachiman for more answers.

"So…" I asked while we walked to his spot. It was unusually long. "How old is she?"

Without missing a beat, Hachiman replied, "Considering that you study with Hiratsuka-sensei, you should know that Christmas cakes' ages shouldn't be questioned."

"…good point."

With that, I shut up and just followed Hachiman. But again, I must raise the question: Why were we walking so far? This is just one library, isn't it? It's not a series of connected libraries, right?

But then again, if I really think about, then it would make sense that Hachiman would choose a spot far away from the main area. Less noise, less people, which meant more concentration for him.

Perfectly logical, but really, did he need to choose a spot that far?

The thump of Hachiman's bag hitting a wooden table broke me out of my stupor, as he began to sit down in a comfortable lounge chair.

Ah, so that was his spot during his high school days.

It was just a quaint, quiet location with two small couches, and an equally small table. The windows from behind the seats provided perfect, natural lighting for any studious students to read as well; no wonder, Hachiman chose this place.

As I put my bag down, I asked Hachiman.

"So…" I took out a few pens, and a couple of draft papers, "What are we doing again?"

Nonchalantly bring out his laptop, Hachiman replied, "Reading."

"Oh."

I waited a few seconds for him to explain further, but…he didn't. Aren't teachers supposed to teach? Which meant that they had to explain? I was sure as hell that Hachiman was doing everything but explaining.

"That's it?"

"Hm." He nodded in response.

I stood still, hoping that he was just joking, and that this was all just an elaborate ruse, but no. He just sat there, typing away at his laptop.

"But that's…so boring." I muttered under my breath.

Obviously having heard me, Hachiman retorted ever so dryly, "You're already in the library. You have no right to complain about boredom."

"But…books?"

"Three books," He paused, looking up at me to make sure I was listening (Which I was), "Pick three books, read them, write an analysis on eac-,"

"W-W-What?!" I freaked out before hushing myself, "…but that's so much work."

"No, it's not," He replied, already back to typing, "Just stretch it out over three days. You'll be fine; I trust you to no procrastinate."

"Ugh, you say that, but that's like…" I wracked my brain for proper analogies, "Trusting a cat to not knock over a priceless vase."

"Which is hard, but not impossible."

"Uuuuuuuugh, I wanna die already."

"At least do it after you're finished reading."

Glaring at him for one final time, I reluctantly took off to the fiction section of the library in a huff. I even heard him saying something about not getting light novels, because light novels suck; but he doesn't know what teenagers like nowadays!

I'll show him. I'll find a light novel so amazing that he'll have no choice but to gush over it!

Or, at least, that was my initial plan.

"What are you doing here?" I said in a harsh whisper, as I found out that Hachiman had been following me all along like a creepy stalker.

"Just a little insurance so that you won't pick any light novels," He said nonchalantly as we walked towards the classic literature aisle.

"That's it? You have that little faith in me?" I said in a faux hurt tone.

"Not really," Hachiman stopped before walking into another aisle, which didn't contain any classic literature, "I just wanted to get some light novels to read."

I watched, mouth agape, as Hachiman walked away without a care in the world as he uttered those words.

 _You hypocrite!_

Ugh, this must be why people say to never meet you heroes. I mean, Hachiman isn't that much of a hero to me, but I guess he's…influential. Not that I like him though! Any respect or amicability that I had towards him was completely, and utterly gone at this very moment!

I sighed deeply.

Might as well get this over with.

I scanned over each book in the classic literature aisle, hoping to find any single one that was written by an author I knew, which wasn't that big of a range. I barely read any old books, besides the one assigned by teachers.

 _Oh hey, it's the Akatu…wait, no - Akutagawa guy._

Honestly, I felt a bit embarrassed at the fact that the only reason I remember this guy was that one character in an anime had the same name. **[4]**

Oh well, as long as the story's interesting, then I should be fine.

As for the next two books, I probably, most likely, should not have any problems picking them, since the aisle I was standing in was so big that the probability of me finding another notable book was basically guaranteed.

There should be another classics author named Daiso **[5]** , right? Or is it Dazai?

But as I walked along the aisle, I came across a rather curious sight. Though, rather than curious, I would say that it was definitely more amusing.

A girl, a bit younger than I am, was tip-toeing for a book at the top of the shelves that was obviously too high for her to reach. I chuckled a bit at the young one's antics; ever so innocent, and curious. If only youths could stay that way forever instead of learning the harsh truth of adulthood.

She even tried to psych herself up before jumping up for the book. Obviously, she failed, but I couldn't help but give a small chuckle again. Oh little one, at least, you'll now know the burden of being shor- Not fully grown.

But…I couldn't shake off this feeling that I knew her…that she was someone familiar. Was it the innocence and naivety? Or was it the glasses – braids combo?

 _Oh no..._

I didn't have to think anymore though, as a youthful voice called out to me.

"Tsurumi-san!" The girl gleefully said, as she hopped over to my location, "I didn't expect to see you here at all. How are you?"

As she got closer, I was able to clearly see her face. That familiar, round, bubbly, jovial face full of cotton candy-like innocence. Yeah, that didn't make sense, but this girl was an incarnation of sweetness itself.

Damn it, why did I want to get Daiso's books?

"A-Aha…good to see you too…" I replied nervously, trying to move backward so I can initiate a strategic retreat. Hachiman said to do an analysis per day, right? I'll just come here tomorrow for another book then.

"Are you studying?"

"...excuse me?"

Tilting her head in confusion, she asked again, "Umm…I mean, are you here to read books or are you doing your summer homework? Because I can definitely help with the latter, if you want!"

"No, no, no!" I vehemently denied her offer, "I'm just here to relax. Ya know, reading books, sipping on tea; relaxing stuff."

"Oh…" She seemed disappointed at first, but perked up immediately after, "Can I join you? I was going to read a few books as well. And having company makes reading more fun, no?"

"Y-Yeah, well…ya see," I nervously moved my hands around, trying to emulate Mr. Jazz hands' thought process, but to no avail, "The thing is…"

I needed a reason. Any reason at all that I can use to get out of here. I've known this girl long enough to know that she's far too dangerous to be stuck around with. That saint-like attitude and jovial nature of hers are too much for me to bear.

"What's taking you so long?"

A deep voice reverberated through the aisle.

I turned around.

"Hachiman!" I said, a little relieved at his appearance, only to realize the implication of it all.

He didn't look at me when I said that; in fact, he looked past me and straight at the girl standing behind me.

"Ah, hello there," He gave a stiff greeting, "You are…?"

With a smile on her face and the grace of a princess, she bowed gingerly before introducing herself to Hachiman.

"Hello to you too, Hachiman-san."

 _Woah, aren't you a little too familiar there?_

"I'm Tsurumi-san's classmate, Hoshino Kairi."

A sigh escaped my lips.

Goddamn it, Class Prez.

Great, now that they both met, I needed an even better reason to hightail it out of here. Maybe I could fake a phone call from mom? But then we wouldn't be able to complete today's lessons…BUT if I stay here to finish my lessons with Hachiman, then I'm sure Prez will find a way to barge in.

How annoying.

"Excuse me for asking," Prez spoke up, "But are you her brother?"

Instantly, Hachiman replied, "Well, no. I'm more like…"

He looked at me blankly.

"A tutor."

"Oh, I see."

Just great, now the Class Prez was obviously gonna use this info for something nefarious. Thanks a lot, Hachiman.

I elbowed Hachiman lightly in the ribs, prompting him to give out a wimpy 'Eeph!' as a result. Heh, that'll show him.

"Aha…you two…" Prez started talking, "are surprisingly close, no?"

I looked at her silently before replying.

"Not really."

"Yeah, I guess."

Hachiman replied the same time I did, causing the both of us to give light glares to each other. Damn it, Hachiman, aren't you supposed to be this super analytical person? Why couldn't you see that the Class Prez will just be an annoyance?

Before I could get out another word, Hachiman got the first hit in.

"And I assume you got your books?"

"Hmm."

I tried to telepathically manipulate his mind via brainwaves transfer through eye contact, but to no avail. Curse Hachiman's innate magic resistance.

"Yeah…? I got…" Taking a quick look at Akutagawa's book, I told him, "Rashomon."

"That's it?"

"…yes."

A huge sigh escaped from Hachiman's lips as he smacked his forehead in exasperation.

 _I can't help it when there's a Class Prez who interrupted my book searching, y'know!_

"Umm…"

Both of us turned to look at Prez, who raised one finger up like she was asking permission from a teacher. Seriously? We're out of school already; stop being such a perfect class prez already, Prez.

"Are you going to being studying together?"

"No."

"Yes."

We glared at each other again. Stop running my plans, Hachiman!

"Oh, I see, I see."

 _No, don't see anything, Prez. In fact, take off your glasses, and let the world be a blurry mess._

"If you don't mind, could I join you? I could lend you some books for your analysis. I can even help writing them!" Prez asked,

"No."

"Sure, why not."

Again, Hachiman's glare was directed at me, as I did the same to him. Why should we let her join our study session anyway?

"She's your friend, isn't she?" Hachiman asked, gesturing towards Prez, "Besides, you said doing analysis alone is boring. So wouldn't she help with that?"

"Ugh…whatever."

Prez's face lit up immediately at this news.

"Thank you, Hachiman-san," Prez cheerfully told Hachiman, who looked away sheepishly, "I've always invited Tsurumi-san to study groups, but she'd always declined."

Almost robotically, Hachiman turned to me.

And just as robotically, I found the bookshelves behind me to be very interesting.

"You said you didn't have friends to form study groups with."

"…we might have miscommunicated." I tried to give a well-thought out reason.

"I see," Hachiman walked past me, "Then you'll absolutely have no complaints about Hoshino-san joining us, right?"

"…nope."

"Good."

Prez flashed me a smile as she followed Hachiman, with various books cradled in her arms. Oi, what about that book you were trying to get earlier? Were you that eager for Hachiman to teach you that you forgot what you actually wanted? Huh, Prez?

I basically had no choice but to follow those two, and soon enough, all three of us were comfortably seated. Hachiman, like he promised earlier, was reading a light novel, while Prez and I were reading some classic literature.

But I was the only one who was actively writing down notes from the book. Why did you forsake me, God?!

More often than not, Hachiman would often answer Prez's questions, even though I know that she knows the answers to those questions anyway. Was this her way of hitting on someone? Never mind the fact that Hachiman's way older than her, but this sort of tactic is really sly and underhanded.

Tch, Prez is more sly than I thought.

And wasn't he supposed to be teaching **me**? Then why was he focusing all his attention onto a girl who he'd just met mere moments ago? I mean, the only reason he was interacting with her was because she asked questions, but he's supposed to be my teacher! Ergo, he's supposed to be taking initiative in educating me!

 _Look at that perfect role model of a class president…she's just sitting there and reading….menacingly._

Not much words were exchanged between the three of us as minutes turned to hours and ultimately, the sun began to set. And being the perceptive person that I am, I immediately noticed this, and set my pen down, ready to pack up and go home.

Looking at my draft paper, I was…actually proud at my work. Sure, it was rather disorganized, but I was glad to have squeezed almost one page of analysis on Rashomon, of all things. I would not wish this burden on anyone, not even my worst enemy.

I would've shown Hachiman my work, if it wasn't for the fact that he was chatting with Prez. In a fit of desperation, I even tried to wordlessly signal to him that I was done with my thing, but he didn't noticed.

It wasn't until Prez said something about having to go home that Hachiman actually noticed the time, and by proxy, me.

"So you're done yet?" He asked, oblivious to the fact that I'd been done for a while now.

" _Yes_."

I gritted my teeth as I answered him. Had his time as a corporate slave dull his observational skills? Ugh, why must all good things come to an end?

"Good," He stood up, and began packing his belongings, "Then let's go home."

Prez nodded as I stayed silent in disbelief. After all those painstaking hours I put in to make this analysis possible, and he just tossed it aside like some sort of garbage without a care in the world. He didn't even ask for it so he can check or correct it!

Hiratsuka-sensei…why did you pick him? Couldn't you have picked that long hair lady? I'm sure that she was your student, and she seemed really responsible as well…

By the time we were out of the library, the darkness of night began to envelop the sky.

"Today was really enjoyable."

I quietly scoffed at what Prez said. All we did was just sit around, and read books. Ah, she did talk to Hachiman a lot, so that might be enjoyable for her. Certainly not for me though.

"Thank you, Tsurumi-san, Hachiman-san."

"No problem," Hachiman replied, as he glanced at me, "It's kind of relieving for me that Rumi has a friend to study with."

"…pssh, as if."

As if hearing my whisper, Hachiman prodded me with his elbow, gesturing towards Prez.

"Yeah, it was… _fun_ ," I somehow managed to spat out that last word, "See ya later, Prez."

"Yup," She cheerfully said, "Maybe we can organize another study session together, if you don't mind."

I couldn't help but scoff again, "Yeah… _sure_."

But it was as if this girl had a filter for sarcasm or something as she smiled ever so joyfully in response.

"Well then, Tsurumi-san, Hachiman-san," Prez gave a slight bow, "I hope to see you again."

"Stay safe now."

With a nod, Prez began walking away from us towards the bus stop. So unless I get really unlucky, I shouldn't meet her during this summer ever again, which was good, because I really have no idea on how to handle someone so…shiny, and energetic.

"She seems like a nice girl," Hachiman remarked offhandedly, once Prez was out of earshot.

"Eh? So now you're into high school girls with glasses and braids?" I also remarked offhandedly.

 _Bonk!_

"Gah!"

He hit me again! Hachiman just hit me like one of those whack-a-mole game again!

Glaring at him, I cried out, "What was that for?!"

"Where did that idea even come from?" Hachiman said, looking at me weirdly.

"Well excuse me for thinking that when you've been talking to her for the entire afternoon."

"…you do know that I only talked to her because she asked me, right?" He replied, "Besides, if you wanted me to pay attention to you, you could've just asked me too."

"This and that are different!" I retorted, frustration building up, "You're my tutor, aren't you? So you're supposed to be focusing on me, right? Besides, she's really, really annoying. So excuse me for feeling a bit pissed off today."

I breathed in and out deeply after my little outburst. It was a good thing that there weren't that many people at the library; otherwise, this would've been a stain on my prospective social life.

But at least, it felt good venting. Especially at a thick-headed idiot like the current Hachiman. I'd bet me and the Hachiman six years ago would've gotten along without a hitch.

Just as I began to imagine how well we would've gotten along, a hand was placed atop my head. Unlike last time, this crass hand wasn't hitting me like a hammer would to a nail. Instead, it softly ruffled my hair side to side.

"Alright, alright. It's my bad," Hachiman said, smiling as he patted me on the head, "Next time, it'll just be us two. Promise."

"…stop treating me like a kid already…"

Upon hearing this, Hachiman abruptly lifted his hand from my head. When did he become so suave anyway? Argh, this is why I prefer the past Hachiman. At least, I would be able to talk to that Hachiman without feeling flustered.

"So," Hachiman began talking again once he noticed I wasn't pissed off anymore, "Where do you want to go?"

I looked at him in disbelief. Where? That should be obvious, right?

"Where else, but my house?"

As if expecting that answer, he gave a small scoff.

"Well, since it's already evening, and because I've been such a bad teacher, I was thinking of treating you to dinner."

"…really?"

"Yup, really. All on me," Hachiman began walking towards his car, which prompted me to follow, "Besides, we can check on your papers while we eat. Sounds okay?"

 _Ugh, if you're going to invite me to free dinner, at least don't make it sound like a chore._

"Hmph," I turned away from him, "You think I'm some sort of cheap girl who'd be tempted by the mere promise of free food?"

Hachiman didn't give any witty or sarcastic remark, opting to just ask me one more time.

"Well?"

Reluctantly, I answered, "…Yoshinoya." **[6]**

"Ah, I haven't been there in a while. Good choice."

"Hmph."

Well, when all was said and done, a free meal at Yoshinoya with the company of Hachiman sounded rather appealing.

…Mostly the free meal at Yoshinoya, of course.

* * *

 **References:**

 **[1]: The common name for a national high school baseball tournament in Japan.**

 **[2]: PRAISE THE SUN! A Solaire from Dark Souls reference. Still haven't beaten one of the games yet.**

 **[3]: Revenge of the Sith reference.**

 **[4]: Bungou Stray Dogs reference, as one of the main antagonists is named Akutagawa.**

 **[5]: Japanese Dollar Store.**

 **[6]: A chain of Beef bowl restaurants.**

 **End notes : Well, not a whole lot of juicy plot in this chapter, since it's just some world/character building. If there are any mistakes, just wait and hope...and point it out too, I suppose. I hope I didn't go too overboard with the OCs. Trust me it sometimes pains me to write them too, and the last thing I want my story to be is an OC-fest.**

 **All in all, hope you enjoyed reading this chapter and see you next year!(wink, wink)**


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